History Main / SelfDestructingSecurity

This is typically used to protect information rather than unique objects, as it's easier to have a backup copy so that the loss of any single copy doesn't mean it's lost forever. However it can also be found used with unique items that would be dangerous in the wrong hands, under the logic that it's better for no-one to have it than the wrong people.

* Franchise/{{Batman}} has this on his [[CoolCar Batmobile]]. He has a number of deterrents to prevent crooks from jacking the Batmobile, up to five levels. The fifth level being detonating the Batmobile. Batman nearly became a victim of this in the final part of the ''ComicBook/{{Knightfall}}'' storyline, ''[=KnightsEnd=]'' when he attempts to use the Batmobile to hunt down the rogue "Az-Bats" Jean-Paul Valley and it ends up blowing up on him. The incident causes ComicBook/{{Nightwing}} to go on a RoaringRampageOfRevenge on Jean-Paul, but Robin later finds out Bats is safe. Turns out he realized that Valley did the same thing he would have - just not that deadly.

** A better and more logical fail-safe for her to use would have been if it were set up to broadcast and release the info if the security was breached or [[DeadManSwitch if she didn't enter the security code every day]]. That way, anyone she had info on, would have an incentive to keep her phone secure and in her possession.

* Sega's All.net-enabled arcade games such as ''VideoGame/{{maimai}}'' and ''VideoGame/{{CHUNITHM}}'' will self-brick if they go too long without connections to the All.net service, [[UsefulNotes/{{DRM}} in order to prevent them from being run outside of authorized locations]]. [[NoExportForYou Have fun importing a cabinet!]]

* Sega's All.net-enabled games such as ''VideoGame/{{maimai}}'' and ''VideoGame/{{CHUNITHM}}'' will self-brick if they go too long without connections to the All.net service, [[UsefulNotes/{{DRM}} in order to prevent them from being run outside of authorized locations]] or [[NoExportForYou regions]].

* iOS devices (iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch) have an option to erase all content on the device after ten failed passcode attempts.

* In ''TheItalianJob'' the villain's big safe has a piece of glass inside the door; if the glass breaks - and drilling into the safe will almost definitely achieve this - the lock's tumblers will be unable to rotate properly and the safe will be permanently sealed. Doesn't actually destroy the gold inside, but the safe is ''huge''; if you have the tools to rip the door off, doing so would have been your first option, not second. [[spoiler:Creator/CharlizeTheron's character ends up opening it the old-fashioned way, by listening and feeling out the combination, a skill she inherited from her late father]].

** ''Film/FromRussiaWithLove'': Bond's attache case has numerous built-in gadgets including a magnetically attached tear-gas canister stored inside. Opening the case without first rotating the clasps triggers the grenade and gives any would-be-snoop a face full of the gas. [[spoiler:This turns out to be just the edge Bond needs when held at gunpoint by Red Gran, whose greed Bond uses to trick him into opening the case.]]

* WW2 Uboat codebooks were printed on paper that would dissolve in water. Not only did this make the codebook easy to destroy, even if the crew were killed before they could do so, an attack on the sub would be very likely to cause the codebooks' destruction anyway. That didn't stop the Allies from seizing ''[[CrowningMomentOfAwesome half a dozen]]'' of them.

* The pilot episode for the show ''WhiteCollar'' features this in the beginning. Peter and his team are attempting to crack open a safe that has a counterfeiter's information in it. If they can get into the safe, they'll have enough evidence to arrest the counterfeiter. Unfortunately, as soon as they crack the safe, an explosive charge destroys everything inside, showing Peter and his men with confetti.

* Modern ATMs have devices designed to contaminate the entire monetary content with a permanent dye rendering the money unusable if anyone breaks into one. The machine's owners can exchange the money at the country's central bank, but anyone trying to pass dyed notes in everyday life will attract law enforcement attention in no time.

* The MatthewReilly short story ''Altitude Rush'' ([[http://www.matthewreilly.com/resources Available in pdf on his website]]) has documents protected by a self destructing case that will release hydrofloric acid on the papers unless properly accessed. The case also has an altitude sensor that will trigger the self-destruct if it goes above 1000 feet or below 10 feet, necessitating the thieves to execute a frantic escape across the NY skyline.

* ''Manga/DeathNote'': Light goes to great lengths to protect the Death Note. Not only is it hidden in his locked bedroom in a secret panel of his desk drawer, but opening the panel without first deactivating the failsafe will incinerate the notebook before it can be found. After all, if someone else takes it he's unlikely to get it back, and it links him to hundreds of murders.

* In ''TheDaVinciCode'', the cryptex protects its contents with a combination lock. Attempting to force the cryptex open will break the vial of vinegar inside, which would dissolve the papyrus along with its message before it could be read. As a result, only the right password will grant access to the message.

* Mentioned in the ''ArtemisFowl'' series. After pulling off a heist for a painting, Artemis checks for pyrophoric/explosive chemicals in the storage tube, in case the person he's stealing from is particularly spiteful.

** This is demonstrably a case of ArtisticLicenseChemistry, though; vinegar isn't a powerful enough solvent to dissolve papyrus, which is fairly sturdy stuff.

* In ''SystemShock 2'', if you [[CriticalFailure trigger an ICE node]] when hacking open a security crate, it sets off a built-in explosive charge, destroying the crate and its contents (and on any difficulty higher than Easy, probably kills you in the process).

* In ''Literature/TheDresdenFiles'' the stolen [[PublicDomainArtifact Shroud of Turin]] is kept like this, with a remote to deactivate the security. In this case it's a precaution against the seller being subjected to YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness after handing it over.

See also BoobyTrap, which the intent is to destroy the thief more than the loot. When this technique is used by a person to kill themselves to avoid torture/giving up secrets, that's CyanidePill. If said person is wired to kill themselves involuntarily before they divulge important data, it's InvoluntarySuicideMechanism instead.

* Franchise/{{Batman}} has this on his [[CoolCar Batmobile]]. He has a number of deterrents to prevent crooks from jacking the Batmobile, up to five levels. The fifth level being detonating the Batmobile. Batman nearly became a victim of this in the final part of the ''ComicBook/{{Knightfall}}'' storyline, ''[=KnightsEnd=]'' when he attempts to use the Batmobile to hunt down the rogue "Az-Bats" Jean-Paul Valley and it ends up blowing up on him. The incident causes {{Nightwing}} to go on a RoaringRampageOfRevenge on Jean-Paul, but Robin later finds out Bats is safe. Turns out he realized that Valley did the same thing he would have - just not that deadly.

* Franchise/{{Batman}} has this on his [[CoolCar Batmobile]]. He has a number of deterrents to prevent crooks from jacking the Batmobile, up to five levels. The fifth level being detonating the Batmobile. Batman nearly became a victim of this in the final part of the ''KnightFall'' storyline, ''[=KnightsEnd=]'' when he attempts to use the Batmobile to hunt down the rogue "Az-Bats" Jean-Paul Valley and it ends up blowing up on him. The incident causes {{Nightwing}} to go on a RoaringRampageOfRevenge on Jean-Paul, but Robin later finds out Bats is safe. Turns out he realized that Valley did the same thing he would have - just not that deadly.

** Occurs twice in the adventure T1-4 ''{{TapletopGame/Temple of Elemental Evil}}''.

*** Senshock, one of the demon lord Iuz's minions, knows some of his master's secrets. If anyone (such as a group of {{PC}}s) uses Charm or any other MindControl effect to make him reveal these secrets, Senshock will suddenly and mysteriously die, slain by luz himself.
** Module [=DA1=] ''Adventures in Blackmoor''. All of the Iron Duke's agents in the Comeback Inn (as well as the Warden in the Prison Out Of Time) have a special Geas placed on them. If anyone uses torture or magic to try to force them to tell about the plane to kidnap King Uther, the Geas will kill them.
** Module [=OA5=] ''Mad Monkey vs. the Dragon Claw''. If the {{PC}}s capture any Dragon Claw monks while in the nation of T'u Lung and try to interrogate them in any way, the monks will burst into flames rather than reveal any of the secrets of their master. This effect is created by the demon Lung Jua (AKA the Dragon Claw) himself.

* The MatthewReilly short story ''Altitude Rush'' ([[http://www.matthewreilly.com/resources Available in pdf on his website]]) has documents protected by a self destructing case that will release hydrofloric acid on the papers unless properly accessed. The case also has an altitude sensor that will trigger the self destruct if it goes above 1000 feet or below 10 feet, necessitating the thieves to execute a frantic escape across the NY skyline.

* In Creator/HarryHarrison's ''The Ethical Engineer'' (second book of the {{Literature/Deathworld}} series), Jason crash-lands on a LostColony where remains of technology are with a religious-like fervor by various clans/cities. One of them builds primitive cars and have booby-trapped the engines should someone attempt to open and reverse-engineer them (or repair them - they make the cars so that they break after a few months). Jason is trying to break the monopoly and allow progress, currently working for the group making petroleum (to run said cars). He tries to make an impression by making repairs to one car. One of the traps (poison gas canisters) is triggered by attempting to remove the screws holding the cover. Jason figures out that the screws are deliberately threaded the wrong way (i.e. you have to turn clockwise instead of counterclockwise). Attempting to turn counterclockwise tightens them and smashes the canisters. He then defeats another trigger mechanism by using melting ice to slowly lower the engine from the housing. The reason he can't build a crude vehicle without reverse-engineering it is because no one in his time remembers how an internal combustion engine is supposed to work.

* In ''VideoGame/{{Uplink}}'' one of the security measures you can purchase for your gateway is a self destruct mechanism as a last resort if the Feds are closing in on you. You lose all the hardware, but get to keep your reputation and avoid being disavowed (ie, gameover).

* Franchise/{{Batman}} has this on his [[CoolCar Batmobile]]. He has a number of deterrents to prevent crooks from jacking the Batmobile, up to five levels. The fifth level being detonating the Batmobile. Batman nearly became a victim of this in the final part of the ''KnightFall'' storyline, ''[=KnightsEnd=]'' when he attempts to use the Batmobile to hunt down the rouge "Az-Bats" Jean-Paul Valley and it ends up blowing up on him. The incident causes {{Nightwing}} to go on a RoaringRampageOfRevenge on Jean-Paul, but Robin later finds out Bats is safe. Turns out he realized that Valley did the same thing he would have - just not that deadly.