Making the decision on whether or not to seek professional protection means evaluating the threat landscape as well as your personal risk profile.
While it’s always important to always notify law enforcement about any threatening behavior, the cops are not your—or anyone’s—personal bodyguard, and therefore there are limitations on the level of protection they provide.
In California especially, criminals have become emboldened with a generally more lackadaisical approach to the law.
Therefore, as a public figure, it’s worth assessing if a bodyguard is right for you.
Security Considerations Specific to California
California has relatively strict firearms laws that can make self-protection a challenge.
Additionally, many high-profile people lack the time or desire to embark on an extensive self-defense course.
There’s also the liability aspect: If a situation escalates and a high-profile individual finds themselves needing to use deadly force, the incident faces intense scrutiny, and the legal proceedings are exhaustingly extensive.
Yet, personal security is a very real need for high-profile people in some of California’s most notorious regions.
Silicon Valley is where CEOs in the tech sphere gather, another targeting concern.
For those in rural areas, there’s less law enforcement present and criminals may see the delay in response time and lack of resources as an incentive.
Assessing Your Risk Profile
The criteria to evaluate how at risk you are based on several circumstances.
It’s best to consult with a professional who can analyze the elements specific to you, but these questions may help as well.
The questions are as follows:
You occupy a high-profile position
This could be in the field of entertainment, politics, business or tech. Essentially, people know who you are.
You’re significantly wealthy
People are able to ascertain your net worth (via public records, by looking at your clothing, jewelry, other assets, etc.) and see you as a potential meal-ticket.
You’re a controversial public figure
If you’ve done anything controversial, usually something in the sphere of politics, business, or personal activities and the public has a strong reaction.
Your online presence reveals personal details
If you’re an influencer and personal details and routines are made public online.
You’ve experienced stalking or harassment
You have someone who’s stalking and or/harassing you, and the pattern seems to be escalating.
You’ve received threats
Someone is out to get you, and they’re letting you know.
If you’re often in a position where you’re vulnerable, for example, through public appearances, and it’s easy to access information about your whereabouts, hiring a bodyguard makes sense.
Recognizing Real Threats
If you’re already experiencing things that make you feel uncomfortable, take a look and see if what you’re going through is a warning sign that merits attention.
Usually, credible threats look like this:
There’s a pattern that escalates
The threat seems inconsequential at first, but then starts to ramp up in frequency and/or intensity.
You’re being watched
The harassment contains details about your movements and your surveillance cameras have captured suspicious activity.
There’s a lot of effort going in to stalking you
The threatening person is committed to the cause of harassing and stalking you.
They’re investing in resources to aid their cause
The person is spending their money on resources such as cameras, GPS trackers, or other means of information gathering.
They continue to test boundaries
Their intrusion on your life is becoming increasingly more and more bold.
Finding the Right Bodyguard
When looking for a bodyguard, it’s important to go with a reputable company and hire someone who is well trained. You want your bodyguard to know exactly what they’re doing.
Here are the qualities you should look for, qualities that the individuals at Security Explorer have, which exceed state requirements:
- They have the proper California licensing and insurance verification
- Their experience is relevant to your specific threat profile—they understand who could be targeting you and in what ways
- They’re incredibly discrete—both in appearance and operational methods
- They have clear well established protocols for both threat assessment and response
- They are able to advise on alternative or additional security measures
- They collaborate with law enforcement and other relevant authorities
Depending on your needs, it’s likely you may only need a bodyguard when you travel or make public appearances.
Conclusion:
Above all else, the most important thing to remember is the more proactive you are, the less likely you are to become a target.
Even though technology is becoming ever-increasingly sophisticated, producing high tech surveillance systems and other common means of protecting assets, the human element still reigns supreme. Criminals are way less inclined to strike when they know you have a trained professional there to protect and watch over you.
