FNAF Security Guard Guide

• About
• Latest Posts

Damien Freidly

Damien is a keen gamer and an esteemed writer within the industry, sharing his time equally between FNAFInsider and GameRant. His biggest passions within gaming usually sway towards all things spooky, and for that reason, FNAF is a game series that he holds near and dear. While he loves the gameplay, for the most part, it is the lore, and indeed the fan-fiction that has kept him engaged with the series this long, and he can't thank Scott Cawthorn enough!

Latest posts by Damien Freidly (see all)

• Authentic FNAF Cosplay Ideas - August 22, 2022
• Amazing FNAF Costume Ideas - August 10, 2022
• FNAF Into the Pit Synopsis: Fazbear Frights #1 - August 8, 2022

The Five Nights at Freddy’s series wouldn’t be the same without its infamous security guards, most of which are subjected to a week of horrific night shifts as the player character in one of Fazbear Entertainment’s many haunted pizzerias.

As the restaurant’s mascot animatronics make their way to your office, you’ll have to check cameras, close doors, flash lights, seal vents, and stay vigilant if you want to make it until 6am unscathed.

However, FNAF’s security guards aren’t just protagonists and player characters. Several security guards throughout the series take on much more sinister roles, acting as antagonists in both the story and gameplay.

FNAF Security Guards At A Glance

• Mike Schmidt – FNAF 1 security guard
• Jeremy Fitzgerald – FNAF 2 security guard for nights 1-6
• Fritz Smith – FNAF 2 custom night security guard
• Unnamed Nightguard – FNAF 3 Fazbear Frights security guard
• Phone Guy – security guard in the FNAF 1 office before Mike
• William Afton – FNAF 2 dayshift security guard, possible security guard of Fredbear’s Family Diner
• Dave Miller – FNAF novel trilogy security guard and William Afton in disguise
• Vanessa A. – Head Security Guard of Freddy Fazbear’s Mega Pizzaplex in FNAF Security Breach

Protagonist & Player Character Security Guards

Mike Schmidt – FNAF 1

In the original Five Nights at Freddy’s, you play as Mike Schmidt, whose name appears on the paycheck he receives at the end of the week. In addition to the game’s main five nights, you’ll also have the chance to play through a 6th night of “overtime” as well as a custom night that allows you to choose which animatronics to face.

To survive your shifts in this game, you’ll have to watch the cameras and keep tabs on Freddy, Bonnie, Chica, and Foxy as they attempt to get into your office. There are two blind spots just outside your office doors, however, so you’ll have to use the door lights to check for animatronics there. You can also listen for their footsteps and other sound cues as they move around the pizzeria.

If there’s an animatronic staring at you from the doorway, you can quickly shut the doors to prevent them from attacking you. However, you’ll have to keep an eye on your power to make sure the doors will stay shut.

Using the cameras, lights, and doors will drain your power, and the desk fan will also slowly drain the power throughout the night since it can’t be turned off. If you run out of power, you will be unable to do anything until 6am – if you survive that long.

The animatronics will become more and more active as the week goes on, and the power in the office will drain faster as well.

Mike Schmidt Story & Theories

Not much has been confirmed about Mike Schmidt himself, but fans used his paycheck to determine that FNAF 1 takes place in 1993. His total wage for the week is accurate to the minimum wage and tax rates in ‘93, which is the only year that the paycheck’s date falls on a Friday.

Mike Schmidt also earned Employee of the Month for working overtime on Night 6, but he was fired after the Custom Night for “tampering with the animatronics” and “odor.” Many fans theorize that Mike Schmidt is actually Michael Afton, the protagonist of FNAF Sister Location and William Afton’s son.

It’s possible that Michael Afton is actually the protagonist and player character for the majority of the FNAF series, and that he was working at different Fazbear Entertainment locations in order to track down William as he promised he would in Sister Location.

However, a lot of the evidence supporting this theory is still being debated, so it’s difficult to confirm for certain whether or not they’re the same person.

Jeremy Fitzgerald – FNAF 2

In FNAF 2, you play as Jeremy Fitzgerald for the majority of the game’s nights. FNAF 2 had a similar premise and play style to FNAF 1: check the cameras and try not to die. Unfortunately, the security office of this “new and improved” Freddy Fazbear’s has no doors to keep you safe from the animatronics approaching through the hall and vents.

However, you do get a Freddy mask, which you can put on to trick most of the animatronics into leaving you alone. You can also flash your light at the animatronics in the hallway to get them to go away. The building can’t run out of power like the location from the first game, but your flashlight battery can die, so you’ll have to use it sparingly so you can protect yourself from animatronics that appear in the hall.

Don’t forget to keep the music box wound as well, otherwise you won’t be able to stop the Puppet from attacking you.

Jeremy Fitzgerald Story & Theories

Jeremy Fitzgerald was the second night guard to work at this new Freddy Fazbear’s location. The first guard had been switched to day shift after complaining about the animatronics’ erratic behavior at night.

Throughout the week, however, Phone Guy’s calls inform Jeremy that there’s an ongoing incident occurring at the location, though he attempts to assure Jeremy that nothing bad is happening until the restaurant has to be shut down at the end of the week.

Since the day shift security guard position had suddenly become available, Jeremy was moved to the day shift to work the restaurant’s last birthday party.

During the party, however, one of the animatronics attacked Jeremy and bit his frontal lobe, which became known as the Bite of ‘87 that Phone Guy mentioned in his FNAF 1 phone calls. Jeremy apparently managed to survive, but he was replaced by a guard named Fritz Smith for the game’s final night shift.

Interestingly enough, one of the original victims of the first Missing Children’s Incident was also named Jeremy. However, it’s unclear if there’s a connection between them as the name “Jeremy” appears several times throughout the FNAF games and books.

Fritz Smith – FNAF 2 Custom Night

Fritz Smith replaced Jeremy for FNAF 2’s custom night after Jeremy became the victim of the Bite of ‘87. There is no difference in gameplay, and their breathing sound effects are the same, though this is presumably just for ease of programming.

Some fans speculate that Fritz Smith is also Michael Afton since he and Mike Schmidt were both fired for the same reasons: tampering with animatronics and odor. If the previous theory about Michael working at different Fazbear locations to search for William, it would make sense for them to be the same person.

Like Jeremy, Fritz shares a name with one of the other victims of the original Missing Children’s Incident, but their connection is also unclear.

Unnamed Nightguard – FNAF 3

FNAF 3’s security guard is never named, but their job is a bit different than Mike, Jeremy, and Fritz’s. Instead of working for Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza, the FNAF 3 guard is the security guard for the Fazbear Frights horror attraction, a haunted-house style homage to Fazbear Entertainment that’s scheduled to open at the end of the week.

The game takes place 30 years after Freddy Fazbear’s closed, so the mechanics involve some new technology—though it isn’t exactly the highest quality. You can check the hall cameras and vent cameras to the right to monitor the attraction. To the left, you can bring up the maintenance panel to reboot your audio, camera, and ventilation systems if they go offline.

Springtrap is the only real animatronic in FNAF 3, but he’s helped by the Phantom Animatronics, which are presumably hallucinations due to the attraction’s poor ventilation system. Springtrap will attempt to attack you in your office throughout the night, and the Phantoms will jumpscare you and cause your systems to crash.

You can use the audio cue on the camera to lure Springtrap into an adjacent room and away from your office, but you won’t be able to use it if the audio system is offline.

If the camera system goes down, you won’t be able to monitor Springtrap as he moves through the halls and vents. When the ventilation system crashes, it will sound an alarm and cause your vision to fade in and out, giving Springtrap the chance to enter your office.

FNAF 3 Story & Theories

Fazbear Frights was meant to make a fun attraction out of the horrific “unsolved mysteries” of Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza, so they recycled the franchise’s vintage artifacts from old pizzerias to create a more authentic experience. However, the attraction isn’t open when the FNAF 3 guard begins their week on the job, so they’re primarily responsible for making sure the building doesn’t catch fire before opening day.

However, once the Fazbear Frights team discovers the Springtrap animatronic and brings it to the attraction, it attempts to attack the FNAF 3 guard until Fazbear Frights mysteriously burns at the end of the week.

The local newspaper cited faulty wiring, but it’s possible that the security guard burned the attraction to try and kill Springtrap. Unfortunately, Fazbear Frights burned before the guard could receive a paycheck, so their name was never revealed.

As with the first two games, fans speculate that the FNAF 3 guard could also be Michael Afton attempting to find his father. If that’s the case, it would make sense for Michael to burn Fazbear Frights at the end of the week since he would likely know that fire could kill Springtrap.

Unfortunately, Springtrap managed to survive the fire regardless of its cause, so FNAF 3 isn’t the last we see of him.

Antagonist Security Guards

William Afton

William Afton is the primary antagonist of the Five Nights at Freddy’s series. He was one of the original founders of Fazbear Entertainment, and as the head of Afton Robotics, he helped create many of the franchise’s beloved animatronics.

However, William Afton is also the sadistic serial killer responsible for the Missing Children’s Incident that caused Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza to become haunted in the first place.

Using his position within the company and the mascot costumes they created, William lured children into the pizzeria’s back room and hid their bodies in the animatronic suits.

Presumably, William Afton was the day shift guard during Jeremy Fitzgerald’s night shift week in FNAF 2, which explains why the shift suddenly became available after another Missing Children’s Incident occurred in the “new and improved” restaurant, causing it to close.

It’s possible that William was a security guard in Fredbear’s Family Diner from FNAF 4 as well since his purple sprite is depicted with a yellow badge. However, his actual position in the business during the events of the game is unconfirmed.

In the FNAF novel trilogy, William Afton disguised himself as a security guard named Dave Miller to sneak around the abandoned Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza at night. It’s unclear whether or not Afton ever used this alias in the universe of the games, but in FNAF Security Breach, there’s a message that just says, “You should fire Dave. He sucks.”

Vanessa A.

Vanessa is the head security guard of Freddy Fazbear’s Mega Pizzaplex in FNAF Security Breach. She first appeared as the player character of FNAF VR: Help Wanted, who was a beta tester that inadvertently assembled 16 digital tapes containing the Glitchtrap virus.

Glitchtrap, which had been uploaded into the game through some of Fazbear Entertainment’s recycled circuit boards, was an incarnation of William Afton that was able to transfer himself into Vanessa’s brain and possess her.

Presumably, Glitchtrap is somehow responsible for creating Vanessa’s evil alter ego, Vanny, who hacked into the Pizzaplex’s computer systems and glitched their once-friendly animatronics. It’s also likely that she hacked into the system to transfer herself to the head security guard position.

Vanessa herself struggles with Glitchtrap’s manipulation, which we see in her email correspondences from FNAF AR: Special Delivery and her therapy tapes in Security Breach. In one of Security Breach’s endings, however, it’s possible to free Vanessa from Glitchtrap’s control.

Other Security Guards

Phone Guy

Phone Guy appears in FNAF 1-3, giving the player tutorials via several phone calls or recordings throughout their weeks on the job. However, Phone Guy also provides important context about the story behind Fazbear Entertainment, giving us several clues to piece together the franchise’s many mysteries.

In FNAF 1, Phone Guy was the security guard that worked in the office before the player character, Mike. He recorded a number of phone calls during his last week on the job, which helped guide Mike through his first four shifts.

Unfortunately, Phone Guy meets an untimely end on Night 4, presumably at the vengeful hands of Golden Freddy based on the sounds that play during the call.

For some reason, Phone Guy seems to know a surprising amount about the horrors happening at Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza. He worked for the company for many years in multiple locations and is apparently a big fan of the mascots, but it’s unclear why he continued to work in such blatantly dangerous conditions.

He constantly attempts to reassure the player that there’s nothing bad going on, but he’s very knowledgeable about the animatronics’ unsettling behavior. In FNAF 2, Phone Guy apparently wasn’t a security guard, but he still seems to have a surprising amount of knowledge about their nighttime behavior anyway.

At the end of the game, however, Phone Guy remarks that he’ll take the night shift himself when the restaurant eventually reopens, which is likely a reference to his position as the security guard before Mike in FNAF 1.

In FNAF 3, Phone Guy’s recordings are mostly training tapes regarding the use of the franchise’s infamous Springlock suits.

However, as the week goes on, he makes several announcements regarding not only the suits, but company policies and management changes as well, so it’s unclear what his role in the company was when the tapes were recorded.

Phone Guy makes a cameo appearance as ambient noise in FNAF 4 as well. His Night 1 recording from FNAF 1 can be heard reversed and pitched down in the background.

Trivia & Other Notable Facts

• Phone Guy was the first character in the FNAF series to have a voice. He’s voiced by Scott Cawthon, the game’s creator and developer.
• FNAF 4 was the first game in the franchise that didn’t feature a security guard as the player character. However, some fans speculate that the FNAF 4 player character is actually Michael Afton as well.
• In FNAF Sister Location, Michael Afton takes on the role of a night technician for the game’s shifts instead of a security guard. When he appears again as the player character in Freddy Fazbear’s Pizzeria Simulator, Michael is the restaurant’s owner and manager.
• Ultimate Custom Night’s protagonist is unconfirmed, but some fans theorize that it could be William Afton trapped in some sort of vengeful hell by Cassidy, the spirit haunting Golden Freddy.
• In FNAF Security Breach, Fazbear Entertainment replaced their nighttime staff coverage with S.T.A.F.F. Bots, which is why Vanessa is the only human security guard in the Pizzaplex. She’s aided by a massive team of Security Bots—as is Vanny, unfortunately.
• Security Breach is the first game in the FNAF franchise to feature a child protagonist, though Vanessa remarks that Gregory would make a great security guard.

FNAF Security Guard Guide: FAQs