Travel often? Here are some ways with which you can secure your precious data from prying eyes
Each one of us has a lot of data stored in our cellphones. This small device that we use every day is our gateway to the world. Using it, we keep in touch with colleagues, friends, relatives and any other people necessary. The advent of social media has opened more avenues to meet new acquaintances, and more importantly share our thoughts and mindset with the world.
The leap taken in social connectivity allows oneself to influence a large number of people and make an impact on society. One look at our social pages on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, Google Plus and even Snapchat can give the viewer significant insights into our ideology, personality and way of thinking.
This sort of information is valuable to anyone who wants to understand us better. While travelling, a person has to go through border crossings and encounters customs officials, who are not known to have a friendly disposition. Depending on the country of travel, these officials can ask you poignant questions and even ask you for access to your social accounts. So, in this scenario, how does one protect his personal information? Read on to find out.
Carry an Alternate Device
That’s right. You need not travel with your primary device. Most security experts recommend buying a cheap smartphone solely for your travels (also known as burner device). This ensures that your sensitive information is safe at home and there is nothing to hide from the government officials. Because, the last thing you want to do is lie to these people.
You should only install essential apps on this device to stay connected with your friends and family. Personal stuff like photo albums, social profiles and email accounts should not form the contents of this device.
No Fingerprint Access
For the sake of convenience, most smartphones nowadays come with fingerprint sensors that provide access to your phone in a single touch. While crossing borders however, this can prove to be an inconvenience. There have been cases in the U.S. where officials have issued a warrant forcing the person to unlock their phones with the touch feature.
Therefore, it is advisable to turn off the fingerprint feature while travelling, as it will make the job of accessing your cell phone tougher for the officials.
Dual Layer Security
Government officials asking for passwords to your social media or email accounts is a rare occurrence. But, in the unlikely event of them happening, a two-step verification system can be of immense help. Assuming, of course, that you have left your primary device at home. The way these system work is that, even when you enter your password a code is sent to your primary number that must be entered before you’re allowed to log in.
Without the code, it is impossible for you to log in. However, this could backfire on the owner too, as the code would be required to log in. A way around this would be entrust your phone with a relative, who can be contacted when you need to log in.
Backup to Cloud
One clever way of retrieving your information is to store it in a cloud service. When travelling, the address book and calendar is probably the most important element that you need access to, at all times. It is also sensitive information that border agents can latch on to.
It is best to upload your contacts and calendar entries to the cloud and remove them from your phone’s disk completely while crossing the border. Once the crossing is made, then all this data can be restored back from the cloud on to the phone.
Travelling with the proper preparation can lead to a joyous and fulfilling journey that is safe and relaxed in nature. So, don’t forget to travel with travel insurance by your side. It covers any unfortunate incident that might take place and lets you truly enjoy your vacation with no worries.
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