There are lots of cyber security challenges that come up when working on the go, but upping your awareness of possible risks and putting together a travel toolkit to help keep you safe is easy to do.
Talking about staying secure when you travel seems a little… optimistic at the moment, huh?
We’d be ignoring the elephant in the room — the giant, lumbering one wearing a face mask — if we didn’t mention the devastating effect COVID-19 has had on travel.
Depending on where you are in the world, it can be hard to believe travel will ever be anything like it used to be. And while we might not be returning to pre-2020 life, we’ll eventually get to a new normal.
It might not even register in your mind as business travel, but many of us are still travelling for work in ways that haven’t been affected as dramatically as jumping on a plane to a different country. Business travel comes in all shapes and sizes — not only cabin luggage size.
There’s also the battered laptop bag type of business travel that includes grabbing a takeaway coffee and jumping in a rideshare with your colleagues to get to a conference across town. Or maybe it’s your commute to a different office location on the local ferry, train, or bus.
These kinds of business travel can fly under the radar. Because they feel like part of our daily routines, it’s easy to go on autopilot and not give too much thought to the cyber security risks we need to guard against when we’re going about our work days.
Out of your comfort zone
Business travel can be stressful. You’re less familiar with your surroundings, it’s often a change in your routine, and there are lots of moving parts to keep track of. Your focus is on getting to your destination and you’re most likely thinking about whatever you need to do when you get there.
You know what can really ramp up that stress level? Losing a device that has all your important data on it or dealing with a laptop that’s become infected by malware. No doubt you’ve heard (or been the main character in) a horror story or two like this.
But never fear! We want to help you and your team protect your work devices and all the sensitive data that’s stored on them when travelling, which is why we’ve created our latest course, Staying Secure When You Travel.
Risky business
We know travel comes with risks. Heck, just crossing the street can be risky. You’re never going to avoid every risk, but what you can do is be aware of them so you can take steps to be safer.
Staying Secure When You Travel helps you identify the types of travel risks that can affect your devices and the data stored on them. There are the physical risks that usually come to mind first — like losing your device or having it stolen — but there are other digital and data risks to look out for as well.
Working securely in transit
Whether you’re working from an airport lounge, from a hotel room, or just catching up on your emails during a break at a conference, there are practical actions you can take to help keep your devices and data safe.
The best part is most of these good security travel practices aren’t hard to do. How you’ll really win is by turning them into habits that you revise as you go, making your defences against online attacks as strong as possible and helping you avoid mishaps.
By following good cyber security practices on the move, you’re taking responsibility for protecting your devices and your organisation’s valuable data. That’s employee of the month material.
Once you know the risks and how to guard against them, you can rest easy and put your attention on getting the results you want out of your work!
What’s in the course?
From pre-travel prep, to establishing a safe connection while working away from home and the office, to what to sort out when you get home, our latest Security Awareness course is all about staying safe when you travel.
The decisions you make on your travels can have serious implications for your work devices and the sensitive company information that you store on them. We highlight some security risks associated with travel as well as tips to help you counter these risks.
As part of the course, you’ll also get a useful checklist for prepping your devices before you get on your way, as well as some essentials for your cyber security travel toolkit.
Who is this course for?
Whatever the frequency, destination, and mode of transport might be, Staying Secure When You Travel contains snippets of valuable information for anyone who travels — whether for business-related reasons or not.
Try it yourself
Sign up for our Security Awareness training today, or take it for a spin with a free 14 day trial.
We love to hear from you
We hope this course encourages you and your team to start thinking about security and how to protect your devices and data long before your final travel arrangements are made or before you hop online using public Wi-Fi.
We’d love to hear your feedback. Drop us a line on support@safestack.io and let us know what you think.