It is an unavoidable downside to becoming the world’s youngest billionaire.
But international fame has forced Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg to hire a 24-hour personal security team.
Like many A-list celebrities, the 27-year-old is now so well-known that he has a bodyguard permanently parked outside his house in Palo Alto, California.
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Mr Zuckerberg’s domestic security arrangements have come to light after fellow online entrepreneur Drew Houston, the founder of web-based file-sharing service DropBox, recalled a recent visit to his home.
Mr Houston, 28, told Forbes magazine that the guard stationed outside Mr Zuckerberg’s property caused him to consider the pitfalls of unparalleled success.
He said: ‘I’m not sure I want to live that life, you know?’
With a staggering fortune of $13.5billion, the Facebook CEO only treated himself to the £7million five-bedroom Palo Alto house – his first home – in May.
The house is believed to be a 5,617 square-foot property in the Crescent Park neighbourhood – a convenient ten-minute drive from Facebook’s offices in Menlo Park.
Until then, the computer genius had been living in a relatively modest two-storey house on a street that neighbours described as ‘absolutely average’.
Mr Zuckerberg is sharing his new house with his girlfriend of seven years, Priscilla Chan. 1903 home with its outdoor walls and trees offers far more privacy than his former 3,800 square-foot rented house.
An entertainment pavilion with outdoor fireplace and built-in barbeque has been added along with a salt water swimming pool and spa.
According to information from the estate agent earlier this year, a wide rocking chair porch at the front of home leads to an impressive entrance hall and reception area.
There is a large living room, with a banquet hall sized dining room and wood-panelled family room. The large kitchen opens into a glass sun porch. The house has five bathrooms
Zuckerberg has lived in Palo Alto, California almost continuously since he moved Facebook to Silicon Valley straight from his Harvard dorm room in 2004.
Despite the great success of the site, which now has 600million members, the New York dentist’s son has always previously lived in rented houses.
Tyler Winklevoss, one of the Harvard twins who claimed Mr Zuckerberg stole their idea for Facebook, was quoted as describing him as ‘the poorest rich person I’ve ever seen in my life’.
Even with the move to the larger mansion, Mr Zuckerberg’s home is still dwarfed by those of his Silicon Valley rivals.
Oracle chief executive Larry Ellison’s house is 8,000 square-foot and Microsoft founder Bill Gates lives in a home that is an impressive 66,000 square-foot.
