Editor’s note: This article was first published in April 2013, and the rise in revenue it reports for security firms serving the super-rich since the crisis began refers to the period after 2008, as of 2013.
For most people, a reassuring security system might be an alarm with motion sensors. Someone in the upper middle class may spend a little more on security and add outdoor sensors or motion-activated lights. Some wealthy people go further and also build a panic room. But for the super-rich it is another story: they take security to the extreme, with the latest in materials, technology and price tags.
Although the super-rich have always had better security than everyone else, since the crisis broke out the companies that look after the safety of this exclusive club have seen their revenue rise considerably. Let’s look at a few examples of what the truly wealthy ask for.
1. Security from the ground up
Forget a single panic room. Nowadays some of the super-rich prefer their home to be a fortress from the moment the first brick is laid. This mansion has bulletproof and bomb-proof glass, walls, floors, ceilings and doors. In other words, not even an army could get in unless it brought tanks or fired missiles at it. Using these materials cost around $750,000 more than building without them. Of course, the people living there feel safe even without an alarm.
2. The security system that shows intruders no mercy
This device is starting to be installed in American mansions. We assume it would be illegal in Spain, since what it consists of is a panel that fires 15 shotgun cartridges when triggered. Put 10 panels along a corridor and 150 cartridges would go off. It is usually hidden inside the walls or even under a floating wooden floor. It has to be activated manually and requires a password, and all of this can be done remotely from any mobile device. Drawbacks: once triggered, it smashes the walls (and splatters them red if the intruder is in the line of fire). We do not know how much this system costs.
3. Gas-based security system
It can be fitted in one part of the house, or devices can be placed throughout the home. Once activated, they fill the whole house with a non-lethal compound, which could be a sleeping agent mixed with pepper spray. Very effective, unless the intruder comes in wearing a gas mask. This system costs around $10,000, so it is not necessarily just for the super-rich.
4. Shelter against nuclear attacks or biological threats
For $50,000 you can build a shelter 20 metres underground to protect yourself from a nuclear, chemical or biological attack, with everything needed to live for 3 or 4 months (food, water, an independent oxygen supply, and so on). Shelters costing up to 2 million euros are said to have been built; they offer no more safety than the basic shelter, but they do come with more comforts.
5. Floating fortress
Superyachts are targets for pirates and terrorists, so their wealthy owners need strong security measures. The idea is similar to what they do at home. The yacht’s master suite is a fortress, with its own independent bulletproof and bomb-proof structure and a separate communication system. Once they spot a threat, all they have to do is send a distress call and lock themselves in. If necessary, they can take control of the yacht from inside the suite, overriding manual navigation. Fitting this system to a yacht costs around $500,000, and according to US Navy records most superyachts on order already come with the floating fortress as standard.
Further reading
- The secret of millionaires, told by millionaires
- 5 business ideas offering services to millionaires
- The 10 countries with the most millionaires per capita
- The most expensive private jet in the world
Featured image: NAC, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
