Mark Zuckerberg has reportedly responded to online threats by hiring 16 bodyguards to protect him at home in California.
The co-founder of Facebook is among a number of young billionaires in Silicon Valley who have increased security after receiving disturbing messages online, a celebrity news website reported.
“He has guards over at his place,” a source told Page Six, adding Mr Zuckerberg’s 16-person detail work in shifts at the $10 million home near Palo Alto.
“You’re touching hundreds of millions of people,” a Silicon Valley source told Page Six. “All the CEOs get threats, and they take them very seriously.”
In August, Facebook said more than 1bn people used the site on one day, setting a new record for the social networking site.
The source, who said the threats sometimes target family members as well, noted that affairs or flirtations involving Facebook have reportedly become a main reason for romantic breakups and divorces, breeding a growing number of people who resent the website.
Emma Patel, the head of family law at Hart Scales & Hodges Solicitors, has said the site acted like a “virtual third party” in splits.
Mr Zuckerberg is now worth a record $47.1bn, more than four times richer than the second-richest person in the US under the age of 40.
In a bid to ensure his privacy at home, he is widely reported to have already paid more than $30 million for several adjoining properties .
The remaining residents are reported to be unhappy at the added security that Mr Zuckerberg has introduced.
Neighbours say the bodyguards are parking illegally, and have urged residents in a letter to report the vehicles to the local parking authority, according to Buzzfeed .
The letter claims Mr Zuckerberg’s security detail has two SUVs “permanently” and “illegally” occupying “desirable parking spots” in the area, the news website reported last month.
A spokesman for the billionaire has denied the cars were parked illegally.
