Employee business travel post-pandemic is back in full swing. Do you know how cyber threats can impact your business travelers and your company’s data privacy?
Here Are the Tips to be Secure While Traveling for Business
Business travel environments often present a perfect opportunity for attackers to compromise your information. Public Wi-Fi, free or paid, is like walking down a dark street at night. You don’t know what is lurking in the shadows, but you can still walk down the street. This tempting premise of free Wi-Fi or paid access allows cybercriminals to have unusual credit card activity go unnoticed.
Another hook is that users on business travel typically stay in the same location for an extended period, giving the hackers time to break in or take control of their devices. Cybercriminals use different techniques, but you can protect your business by taking a few steps:
- If possible, always use a VPN to protect yourself against data theft. When you connect to an access point (Hotspot or Wi-Fi), you have no idea if it’s a legitimate hospitality wireless network or a network configured to steal your information. Even legitimate Wi-Fi networks may be collecting information about you. The best way to protect yourself in all situations is to use a VPN. VPNs encrypt your data and communication making it almost impossible to steal.
- When connecting to public Wi-Fi, look for multiple similar Wi-Fi names. Multiple names can indicate that someone is trying to impersonate a legitimate Wi-Fi network. If you see multiple Wi-Fi names, ask for help connecting to the correct one. For example, Hilton Wi-Fi and Hilton Public Wi-Fi: the legitimate one is Hilton Wi-Fi; however, many people will try connecting to Hilton Public Wi-Fi.
- Download hospitality apps before going on your business trip. Many cyber criminals will create a QR code and post it as a legitimate hospitality app. Once installed, they will start to steal your data.
- Bluetooth is a common way for cyber criminals to attack devices. Once attached, they can access all your information. Unless needed, turn off Bluetooth.
- Turn off NFC (tap to pay). You don’t know if the device you connect to (tapping) has been compromised. Although the NFC range is limited, it is another way an attacker could take control. Unfortunately, their security practices may not be as strong as ours when traveling to other countries. This is especially true in the Caribbean.
- In the old days, if using a website that started with “https” you were safe. Unfortunately, this is no longer the case. Always look at and verify the web address. Never click on links in emails or on websites. If you need to do online banking, go to the website natively instead of following a link in an email.
- Beware when giving your phone number (i.e., for dinner reservations, etc.) Follow the same rules as if you were on your computer or phone, don’t click on links that can open your phone to receive spam text messages.
- Lastly, use a credit card vs. a debit card. If your account is compromised, it is much easier to reconcile fraud with a credit card than a debit card. Try only to use ATMs if they are located at a bank.
For more information on protecting your data, reach out to an iCorps expert.