Close protection in Athens and throughout Greece — licensed officers assigned to a person rather than to a building, working at a profile you choose, from a single discreet escort to a full detail with vehicles.
Most enquiries begin with the word bodyguard, and the picture it brings with it is misleading. Close protection is not a large man standing beside you. It is planning: knowing the route before it is driven, the venue before it is entered, and the exit before it is needed — so that the visible part of the job stays uneventful.
What the service actually involves
An assignment begins with an assessment, not with an officer. We establish who the principal is, what makes them of interest, where they will be, who knows they will be there, and what a bad outcome looks like — intrusion, confrontation, photography, a kidnapping risk, or simply an unwanted conversation in a hotel lobby.
From that we set the profile, the number of officers, whether transport forms part of the cover, and what happens at each point in the day. The plan is written, briefed and rehearsed where it warrants it. Officers who improvise are officers who were not briefed.
Levels of cover
Single officer
One officer accompanying the principal. Appropriate for business visits, negotiations, court attendance, medical appointments and travel where the concern is nuisance, intrusion or opportunistic risk rather than a directed threat.
Two-officer detail
One officer with the principal and one working ahead — clearing arrivals, holding the vehicle, managing entrances and exits. This is the point at which protection stops being reactive, because someone is always looking at the next place rather than the current one.
Detail with transport
Officers together with security-trained drivers and, where required, an escort vehicle, run jointly with our executive security transfer. Journeys are planned with alternatives, and the vehicle is a controlled space rather than a taxi that happens to be booked.
Residential and overnight cover
Static cover at a residence, villa or hotel suite, alone or alongside a family detail, for periods when the principal is in one place and the concern is the property boundary rather than the route.
Low profile as the standard
Unless you ask otherwise, our officers are dressed for the room they are in and are taken for staff, colleagues or guests. At an event they are in evening dress. In a hotel they read as business travellers. The measure of the work is that nobody at the next table concludes anything about who you are.
High-visibility cover has its uses — deterrence is occasionally the whole point — but it is a decision, not a default, and it attracts precisely the attention many clients came to us to avoid.
Where we operate
Athens and Attica as standard, including Athens International Airport, the port of Piraeus, hotels across the city and the Riviera. Beyond that we work throughout the mainland and the islands, and aboard chartered vessels arranged through our yacht chartering service. Island and out-of-region assignments need more notice, because officers travel and accommodation has to be arranged around the principal’s movements rather than the other way round.
Licensing, vetting and training
Private security in Greece is regulated, and both companies and personnel operate under licence. Every officer we assign holds the required licence, is vetted before engagement, and is selected for judgement as much as for physical capability — the ability to defuse a situation without touching anyone is the more useful skill on almost every assignment.
On firearms, we would rather be plain than impressive: Greek law is highly restrictive, and permits for private security are narrow and function-specific. Close protection here is conducted unarmed. Anyone promising otherwise for a routine assignment is either misinformed or misleading you.
Working with your household and your people
Protection fails at the seams — the assistant who publishes an itinerary, the driver who posts a photograph, the housekeeper who lets in a caller. We brief the people around a principal on what they can say and to whom, review the information already public about the household, and where relevant coordinate with an existing team rather than displacing it.
The wider assessment of a residence, an office or a routine belongs with our security consulting practice, and for owners abroad it works alongside property management and key-holding.
Notice, duration and cost
An assignment is quoted on the number of officers, the hours, whether transport is included, and the location. Short assignments are billed by the day, ongoing cover on a retainer. We can respond at very short notice in Athens; a properly planned detail, with a reconnoitred route and a briefed team, wants more.
Frequently asked questions
Are your officers licensed?
Yes. Private security in Greece operates under licence for both the company and the individual, and we assign only licensed, vetted personnel. We will confirm the position in writing before an assignment begins.
How quickly can you provide an officer in Athens?
For straightforward cover in Athens, often the same day. A detail requiring route planning, venue reconnaissance and vehicles needs longer, and we will say so rather than send someone unprepared.
Will people know I have protection?
Not unless you want them to. Low profile is the default and our officers dress and behave for the environment. Deterrent, visible cover is available where that is the objective.
Can you protect my family rather than me?
Yes. School runs, a spouse, children and elderly relatives are frequently the actual point of exposure, and cover for a family member is arranged in the same way — usually with more emphasis on routine and on the people around them.
Do you provide female officers?
Yes. For many assignments a female officer is not a preference but a requirement, and a mixed detail is often the least conspicuous arrangement available.
Is any of this confidential?
Assignments are conducted under confidentiality, officers are bound by it, and we do not discuss clients — including with prospective clients who ask who else we work for. That question, asked of us, tells you what would be said about you.
Arranging cover
Tell us who needs cover, where, when, and what has prompted the enquiry. Everything said in that conversation is confidential whether or not you engage us, and we will tell you honestly if what you describe does not warrant a detail. We are reachable at any hour.