Is fear of people a form of shirk (associating partners with Allah)?

Question:
Is it considered shirk (associating partners with Allah) that most people today fear transgressing the limits of people, but do not fear transgressing the limits of Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He)?

Answer:
Fear is of three types:
Fear of the unseen: This is major shirk (associating partners with Allah).
As for fear of a created being in what it is capable of, fear of the ruler, fear of the oppressor, and fear of thieves; there is no blame in this. One takes the necessary measures, just as Allah said regarding Musa: [Surat al-Qasas: 21]. He feared Pharaoh, the oppressor.
So if one fears the oppressor and guards against his evil by staying away from his place or by making excuses to him, and if one fears thieves and sets up guards and locks the door, and the like of that; all of this is permissible.
The third type of fear: natural fear. Fear of the cold, so one wears good clothing; fear of the heat, so one uses air conditioners; fear of scorpions and snakes and the like, so one takes protective measures against them; there is no blame in this, and it is permissible.
Q: Some people fear transgressing the limits of people, but do not fear transgressing the limits of Allah?
A: The point is: if one fears a created being with natural fear for which there are causes, it is not shirk (associating partners with Allah).
As for the fear in which one believes that the unseen knows his affairs, or knows the unseen, or that it benefits and harms by its own power, or the like of that; this is shirk (associating partners with Allah).
As for fear that has causes: either the person is oppressive, or there are thieves, or the like of that, it is like the story of Musa: [Surat al-Qasas: 21].