'Uber for bodyguards': New app provides armed security teams at the push of a button

A new app launched in the United States now makes it as easy to book an armed personal security team as it is to book a taxi ride to the airport or order a food delivery. 

Called Protector, the app allows users to hire active or retired military, SWAT, and police officers. 

The armed guards "will stay right by your side, ensuring your safety," according to the app's description on the Apple Store. All the officers are trained in technical combat, casualty care, risk assessments, and mitigation. 

The protection team can provide a detailed analysis of "vulnerable locations" ahead of travel, like identifying chokepoints and high ground to address potential threats. 

Users can select the number of cars in the motorcade they will need and, if they want, the dress code for their uniform. 

The app's description calls it "a revolutionary personal security app that enhances personal protection and makes private security available to the general public". 

According to records from app ranking site Sensor Tower, the app launched in the United States on February 17, but is only available for users in Los Angeles and New York City. 

It’s already ranked 13th in the Travel category on the Apple app store with just under 5,000 total downloads. 

Americans 'focused' on security after CEO killing

According to LinkedIn, one-time Meta product designer Nick Sarath founded Protector Security Solutions, the parent company for Protector and its sister app Patrol in October 2024. 

One video on Protector’s X profile walks through several scenarios for how protection teams could’ve stopped alleged gunman Luigi Mangione from shooting Brian Thompson, the CEO of UnitedHealthcare, in a New York street on December 4, 2024.  

In the first scenario, the operator stops the assassin from getting close enough to do any damage. In two other scenarios, the assassin draws a weapon and gets shot by the operator before he can land a shot at the target. 

If the customer is shot by a would-be assassin, the operator then puts a tourniquet over the wound and proceeds to call emergency services. 

Sarath said in a statement issued two days after Thompson’s death that "Americans are particularly focused on personal security". 

"We rely on law enforcement to keep us safe, but they cannot be everywhere at once," Sarath continued. 

"Protector is designed to support the goals of law enforcement and will provide an accessible way for people to protect themselves and their loved ones".