5 Quick Ways to Fend Off Common Cyber Attacks When Traveling

5 Quick Ways to Fend Off Common Cyber Attacks When Traveling

Key Points:

• The business information that you travel with or business data you access while traveling can be compromised and used against your organization.
• Potential attackers include foreign intelligence services, competitors, and competitors.
• While security technology has advanced, cybercriminals exploit businesses’ big weakness — people.
• You can fend off cyber attacks when traveling by adopting some simple cybersecurity tips.

The business information that you travel with or business data you access while traveling can be compromised and used against your organization. Travelers, either vacation-goers or executives on business, are usually easy targets for cybercriminals because of several issues such as:

• Connecting to unsecured public WiFi
• Spending more time on the internet
• Leaving device unsupervised

You have the formidable task of keeping your business secure even when on vacation. While it might appear difficult, here are five cybersecurity tips to fend off cyber attacks when traveling.

1. Ensure Your Finance People Cannot Alter Any Information

Your first step in ensuring your business is secure is to have trustworthy people handling your finances. Whether the CFO, bookkeeper, or controller, they should know that they cannot alter any addresses, payments, or add new vendors without your approval or at least a couple of people looking at it.

If something critical comes up, the people handling your finances should run it down to the ground to ensure they’re dealing with a legitimate person.

Many companies have lost millions sending several checks because someone failed to do a simple check to validate it or confirm with the company executives. Set policies so that you can’t lose money.

2. Take the Correct Cybersecurity Insurance

Reach out to the carriers and ensure you have cyber insurance. Cyber insurance will cover you if there’s a breach. If an attacker hits your business when away, the insurance will help you recover.

The recovery cost quickly adds up to millions of dollars after an attack, quickly killing your business.

Find a broker today and discuss what you need to get covered today.

3. Encrypt the Laptop You’re Travelling With

Encrypt all the data in the laptop you’re traveling with. Both Windows and Mac have options that allow you to encrypt all the data on your laptop.

Encrypting the laptop locks everyone else out of the laptop, so your data will be safe even if you lose it or someone steals it. If you’re in the complaint industry like healthcare and lose your laptop when traveling, you won’t have to report losing patients’ data to the feds.

4. Take Caution When Using Public WiFi

When you’re out for the summer, be very cautious of public WiFi. Hackers have an easy time intercepting public WiFi signals or putting out a dummy signal. Hackers can use WiFi pineapple to spoof wireless networks.

For instance, in Starbucks, a hacker can set up a wireless connection and set it to Starbucks and ask you to enter your Starbucks credential to get free access. The network can alternatively ask you to enter your Facebook account to get access.

Ensure you’re careful about using free WiFi.

5. Be Careful When Using The Business Center at Hotels

When you’re in a hotel and need to check flight information or something a lot of time, you’d go to the business center. However, when you’re in a business center, don’t type in any sensitive credentials or log information that you would not want someone else to get.

Even if it’s a secure kiosk system, avoid typing in any sensitive information.

Online, there are guides to hacking kiosk applications. While the kiosk owners try to stay ahead of hackers, there is always a way in. Alternatively, the kiosk might be someone who makes it appear like a locked-down official kiosk to get your trust and your credential.

Whatever you do, never put your credential into a computer that you don’t have direct control of.

Colorado Computer Support Can Offer You Comprehensive IT Security to Keep Your Business Safe

At Colorado Computer Support, we’ll analyze your business’ technology, identify vulnerabilities, patch systems, and help your business prepare for any new threats. We can help you take proactive measures to prevent attacks before they happen.

Contact us today to help ensure your network and system are safe to prevent disastrous downtimes caused by attacks.