Most guarded places on Earth: What are these 25 places hiding?

Fort Knox (aka the United States Bullion Depository) guards 147.3 million ounces of gold — roughly half of the U.S.’s gold reserves. The facility also protected important documents such as the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution and the Bill of Rights during World War II.

The exterior is surrounded by a steel fence, and the building’s walls are made of steel-reinforced, concrete-lined granite. The Fort Knox military base, which houses more than 26,000 soldiers, is right around the corner.

The exact security measures used at Fort Knox are kept secret. But among the rumored systems are turrets, land mines, radar, criss-crossed electric fences and laser-triggered machine guns, according to Business Insider.

There is also a battalion of Mint Police stationed inside the 20-ton vault door, for which nobody has the full combination.

2. White House

Unsurprisingly, the president of the United States lives in one of the most secure homes in the world.

It would take hundreds of people to penetrate the structure, which is surrounded by a giant iron fence, lined with bullet-proof windows and swarming with Secret Service agents.

And that’s exactly what happened during the January 2021 riots at the Capitol building a few weeks before Joe Biden was sworn in as president.

Since the attack, the House and Senate are considering security upgrade packages worth $1.9 to $3.7 billion.

Similar to Fort Knox, the Bank of England’s vault protects more than 4,600 tons of gold with advanced security measures not disclosed to the public.

What we do know is that the vault is 100 percent bomb-proof, and the lock mechanism has voice recognition and requires a giant three-foot key.

The bank was established in 1694 and has never been robbed. But rumor has it that in 1836, a sewer worker accidentally entered the vault through the floor. Instead of stealing the gold, he reported the security problem to the bank and was rewarded with £800 (more than $100,000 USD in today’s money) for his honesty.

4. Area 51

The mysterious Area 51 is an offshoot of an Air Force base in the Nevada desert. It opened as an aircraft testing facility in 1955, but the CIA didn’t officially acknowledge its existence until 2013.

We don’t know exactly what the government is hiding there, but some conspiracy theorists are convinced it’s a crashed alien spacecraft along with the vehicle’s pilots. Several abductions have been reported in the area. And one former employee claims to have seen alien technology and photos of aliens inside, according to the BBC.

A Facebook group with more than 1 million people jokingly suggested storming the grounds to see for themselves in 2019. But at a base known for developing, testing and protecting cutting-edge military technology, that likely wouldn’t have ended well.

Buckingham Palace is one of England’s most popular tourist attractions, known for the famous changing of the guard. It’s also where Queen Elizabeth II lives.

The queen is protected by high walls lined with spikes and barbed wire. But that wasn’t enough to keep Michael Fagan from breaking in while high on mushrooms — not once, but twice. The second time, he entered the queen’s bedroom as she slept, giving her quite the scare.

Since then, the palace security has been doubled.

6. Svalbard Global Seed Vault, Norway

Also known as the Doomsday Seed Vault, this secure facility doesn’t protect gold, documents or important people.

It protects seeds.

The idea is that if we ever accidentally destroyed our food supply, we could avoid doomsday with the backup seeds.

The seed vault sits in a copper mine on a remote island about 800 miles from the North Pole and is protected with motion sensors, airlocks and reinforced concrete walls.

Until recently, few people on earth had access to the information lying under guard in the Vatican Secret Archives.

These archives include 53 miles of shelving filled with documents, private letters and historical data dating back to the eighth century. The most important documents are guarded in an underground vault called “The Bunker.”

Originally, only the inner circle of the Catholic Church had access to the archives. But in 1881, Pope Leo XIII opened them to scholarly researchers. In response to increased public interest, Pope Francis opened the archive to the public in March 2020 to show the church has nothing to hide.

But only documents 75 years and older are available.

8. The Kremlin, Russia

The Kremlin is a complex of buildings in Moscow that includes the president’s official home (even though he doesn’t actually live there).

The exterior is protected by walls up to 21 feet thick. Inside are hundreds of elite soldiers, known as the Presidential Regiment.

These soldiers are rumored to have excellent hearing abilities. According to a Russian newspaper, they must be able to understand whispers from 19.6 feet away.

If we ever face Armageddon, the Cheyenne Mountain Complex is where you’ll find the survivors.

Buried under 2,000 feet of granite on Cheyenne Mountain, this nuclear bomb-proof bunker is as secure as it gets.

The underground complex has housed several government operations throughout history, including the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), and it is often referred to as the “nerve center” of homeland defense operations.

Behind the entrance’s two 25-ton doors is an entire living complex complete with a fitness center, cafeteria and six million gallons of emergency water and food rations.

10. Korean Demilitarized Zone

The Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) is a 2.4-mile strip of land buffering North and South Korea.

Since the Korean War, multiple skirmishes, mini-battles and murders have stained the DMZ, including two American soldiers who were killed while on a routine assignment to trim a tree blocking their view of another guardhouse.

The zone is littered with minefields, and both sides are heavily fortified to defend against attacks and prevent defections.

Despite the danger and insane security, one small South Korean community, Taesung Freedom Village, lies within.

Its 188 citizens are exempt from mandatory South Korean military service and receive special tax benefits. But they are also constantly surveyed by soldiers, follow a mandatory nightly curfew and must show up for a roll call every evening.

Entrance to the Lascaux Caves is so restricted that even security guards are allowed to enter for only a few minutes at a time.

The caves are home to more than 900 displays of prehistoric art, some dating back as far as 20,000 years. But the cave system is extremely fragile. In 1963, a mysterious fungus laid siege to some of the drawings, and they’ve been sealed off from the public ever since.

Before this incident, the cave drew up to 2,000 visitors per day. But for nearly six decades it’s been locked behind steel doors, visited only by a handful of academics.

12. The Swiss Vaults

The Swiss Vaults are where the wealthiest people on earth store their treasures.

This network of solid rock vaults is built deep into the foothills of the Alps. It ranges from small, 1,000-square-foot chambers to enormous rooms with 300-foot ceilings.

The vaults protect gold, artwork and family treasures. But owners also use them to hold secure meetings.

Valuables stored here are not only safe from thieves but also world chaos. Switzerland is like a vault itself — citizens are armed, military-trained and prepared for disaster. At one point, there was enough secret underground bunker space to hold the entire population, and the country’s infrastructure was rigged with booby traps to protect against invaders.

The Catholic Church isn’t the only religious group with amped-up security.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (widely known as the Mormon church) carved the Granite Mountain Records Vault 700 feet inside a mountain near Salt Lake City.

Access is restricted, and the facility is protected by two doors, weighing 9 and 14 tons, designed to weather a nuclear blast.

Inside are 3.5 billion microfilm images and genealogical records. Latter-day Saints believe ancestors who did not hear about the Mormon faith can be baptized by proxy. The deceased can then accept or reject the baptism that was carried out for them.

14. Communications Security Establishment, Canada

The Communication Security Establishment (CSE) is responsible for Canada’s cyber security, foreign intelligence, cyber operations and assistance to foreign intelligence partners.

In other words, secret spy stuff.

CSE operates out of several buildings in Ottawa, including the Edward Drake Building and 1625 Vanier Parkway.

Despite the secrecy surrounding these buildings, they are surprisingly fun. For example, the Edward Drake Building is equipped with basketball courts, volleyball courts and five kilometers of walking trails.

The Tumen River flows along the boundaries separating North Korea, China and Russia. Due to its shallow waters, it’s one of the most popular escape routes used by North Koreans to defect.

Each border is heavily patrolled, and North Koreans are banned from stepping within 500 feet of the river.

This makes it not only harder to escape but also prevents them from connecting their phones to Chinese cell signals to contact the outside world.

16. Bold Lane Car Park

People secure all types of things that are subjectively, or objectively valuable — the Hope Diamond, the Mona Lisa … and apparently a parking lot.

Bold Lane Car Park, operated by Parksafe Systems according to The Guardian, initially opened in Derbyshire in the mid 1970s, and for a time it was frequented by many people experiencing homelessness. It became known as a venue for “various antisocial behaviors,” says security expert Identiv.

In 1998, it was shut down to improve its security systems, adding closed-circuit television for each parking space, 24/7 human security patrols, panic buttons and sensors that can sense if a car is moved even a little.

If your car moves when sensors think it shouldn’t, the entire garage of 315 spaces locks down.

After the parking garage re-opened — with an elaborate entry/exit system made up of barcoded tickets linked to individual spaces — the “antisocial behaviors” dropped to zero immediately.

This prison, nestled in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains near Florence, Colorado, has been named by the Guinness Book of World Records as being one of the most secure prisons in the world.

Opened in 1994, ADX Florence was designed to incarcerate those prisoners deemed too dangerous for the average prison. Every inch of it is designed to be inescapable.

The prison’s exterior is bland and designed in a monolithic style to confuse anyone unfamiliar with the layout. The windows of each cell are positioned to look at the sky and the walls of the building — so inmates don’t know where they are located.

The grounds themselves are surrounded by a 12-foot razor wire fence, and security cameras line both the inside and outside.

According to ThoughtCo., some of the other protective measures this prison uses are attack dogs, laser technology and remote-controlled doors. Most of the prisoners are inside their cells for 20 to 24 hours a day. Visitors and outside time are highly restricted, if allowed at all.

18. Snake Island

Snakes. Why did it have to be snakes?

This island, 90 miles off the coast of Såo Paolo, is actually called Ilha de Queimada Grande — the nickname comes from the 2,000 and 4,000 golden lancehead vipers that call it home.

In terms of protection measures, the Smithsonian says the island is guarded by the isolation of its own geography. Cut off from the mainland and lacking in ground predators, the snake population reproduced quickly and learned to crawl up trees to prey on the island’s birds.

Since a typical snake will track their next meal, and it’s pretty difficult to track birds, their venom evolved to be about five times as deadly as their cousins on the mainland.

Because of their sheer number — some estimates say there is one snake per square meter in certain spots — the Brazilian government has restricted access to the island.

Since a golden lancehead bite carries a seven percent chance of death, and three percent even with treatment, keeping people out seems like an appropriate precaution.

The history of Sealand, where HavenCo had its home, reads like the plot of a fever dream.

Sealand — which tech news site Ars Technica describes as a “120-foot by 50-foot deck on a pair of hollow concrete legs” — was declared a sovereign nation in the 1960s by a pirate radio operator named Roy Bates. He crowned himself prince, and defended his “land” by throwing explosives and shooting at anyone who tried to board.

Fast forward to the 1990s. Bates’s son made an arrangement with entrepreneurs Hastings and Lackey who wanted to run a data-haven on it — that’s like the “informational equivalent” of a tax haven.

Given that Sealand is only accessible by a few precarious methods, it seemed pretty secure. Despite, or perhaps because of, the isolated location, HavenCo did not take off, and its founders were ultimately hoisted with their own petard when the Bates family, as sovereigns of Sealand, nationalized the company.

20. Iron Mountain

Iron Mountain’s slogan is “for truly secure information management and protection, go underground.” According to the official website, this information storage facility is located 220 feet underground in what used to be a limestone mine.

The 1.8 million square foot space contains vaults that are temperature- and humidity-controlled, patrolled by armed guards and monitored by state-of-the-art security systems. The walls and doors can withstand three hours of fire heat. If the power goes out, there are 26 diesel-powered generators waiting to be tagged in.

What exactly is stored at Iron Mountain is kept under lock and key, but given their website specifies having “lower temperatures” and vinegar syndrome solutions on hand, you can guess that part of their clientele wants to store vintage films.

Science website Phys.Org describes vinegar syndrome as what happens when acetate, which is what films used to be recorded on, is exposed to humidity over a period of time. There might be some truth to the rumor that Warner Brothers Studio and the Smithsonian Museum are a few of their clients.

“Air Force One” is actually a military call-sign, used for any plane that carries presidential cargo, so the place that’s being guarded here isn’t necessarily fixed.

While a lot of its specs are classified, one of its defense mechanisms is speed. According to Virginia’s Prince George County website, Air Force One can reach speeds of up to 600 miles per hour.

Air Force One has a mobile command center and secured communications equipment — giving the president everything he needs to respond to emergency situations right onboard.

The plane is armored with substances thick enough for it to be capable of withstanding a nuclear attack. When it is in the air, Air Force One is followed by a second plane, called the Doomsday, which is also a nuclear bunker that’s on hand just in case.

The plane can even be refueled in mid-air, eliminating the need to stop at potentially less-secure places.

22. Bohemian Grove

If you’ve never heard of Bohemian Grove, it might be because the world’s richest men have paid a lot to keep it off your radar.

It refers to the 16-day celebration thrown by the Bohemian Club, which dates back 150 years, says an article by Vanity Fair. Membership dues are $25,000; the wait list is up to 15 years long; and the approximately 2,500 members are mostly white, conservative men.

There are definite Pagan overtones to at least the beginning ceremonies, when there is a ceremonial burning of a “cremation of care” at the feet of a 40-foot owl statue.

There is an auditorium, where men put on plays, attend lectures and enjoy concerts.

The location of the grove is 75 miles north of San Francisco, in Monte Rio, and it covers around 2,700 acres. Britannica confirms that it has become increasingly inaccessible, which “lends further mystery to its activities.”

While the drink has been around since at least the 1880s, the recipe for Coke wasn’t committed to paper before 1919, when it was used as collateral for a loan, according to Atlas Obscura.

That handwritten formula sat in a bank vault until 1925 when the loan was repaid, then it was moved to another bank vault. Since the company’s 125th anniversary, the recipe has rested in its final vault, which is inside a museum near Atlanta. CNN says that the vault is like something straight out of heist movie, with a code pad and a palm scanner to protect its contents.

Coca-Cola Co. does their best to keep this mystery alive as a keystone of its marketing campaign. Urban legend has it that only two people know the true recipe for Coca-Cola, which seems a bit far-fetched, given the number of bottling plants the soft drink has worldwide.

24. The Burlington Bunker

At the height of the Cold War in the 1950s, the British government decided that they had to do something about their nerves, so they built an underground city in a 240-acre abandoned quarry.

According to the Business Insider, the city was designed to protect Britain’s prime minister, the government, and the royal family in case of a nuclear attack.

The bunker was a massive network of hidden entrances, canteens and streets that held enough supplies to ensure the survival of 4,000 government employees — but not their families — over a period of 90 days.

The reinforced concrete walls of the city also housed wired telephones, a hospital, bakery, and an outpost of the BBC broadcasting system.

Even though the report of nuclear war was an exaggeration, and the underground city was never used for its intended purpose, it was maintained until 1991, when it was finally found to be too expensive to keep up.

Of course, there isn’t just one Google data center; there are locations all over the world. Google’s data center website lists the city that each U.S. center is located in, but their size and “colocation abilities” are kept shrouded.

There are typically six layers of security — including overlapping cameras, a vehicle crash barrier, and an anti-climb fence that is coated in motion-sensitive fiber — as seen in online company videos.

After passing those protocols, an employee must have their identity verified through an eye scan then pass through the securities operations checkpoint, before finally arriving at the data center floor, where the hard drives are kept.

Only 1% of Google employees set foot there.

Google also does not want to rest on its six-layered haunches. As a final security measure, it employs two testing firms: one that is tasked with breaking into the facility from the inside, and one that acts like an employee trying to smuggle information out.

The Most Dangerous Airports Around the World

Only the most highly qualified pilots are able to handle the harrowing runways at some airports across the world, traversing mountains, sand and even ice.

Hong Kong’s Kai Tak Airport, known for an approach that required planes to skim over apartment buildings to land on a runway that protruded into the harbor, closed in 1998 to make way for a bigger, much-easier-to-maneuver airport. However, many other airports infamous for difficult landings and fatal accidents are still in use today.

Here are 22 of the most dangerous airports around the world, in no particular order: