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Planning a spring break vacation or work-related travel? People are frequently more vulnerable when traveling because a break from their regular routine or encounters with unfamiliar situations often result in less cautious behavior. If this sounds like you, or someone you know, these five tips will help you protect yourself and guard your privacy.

• Track that device! Install a device finder or manager on your mobile device in case it’s lost or stolen. Make sure it has remote wipe capabilities.
  • http://mediawiki.middlebury.edu/wiki/LIS/IOS_FindMy
  • http://www.windowsphone.com/en-US/How-to/wp7/basics/find-a-lost-phone
  • http://www.howtogeek.com/166057/how-to-find-your-lost-android-phone-even-if-you-never-set-up-a-tracking-app/
• Avoid social media announcements about your travel plans. It’s tempting to share your upcoming vacation plans with family and friends, but consider how this might make you an easier target for local or online thieves. While traveling, avoid using social media to “check in” to airports and consider posting those beautiful photos after you return home. Find out how burglars are using your vacation posts to target you in this infographic.
• Traveling soon? If you’re traveling with a laptop or mobile device, make sure it is secured with strong authentication and avoid traveling with (or if you must, encrypt) confidential information.
• Limit the amount of personal and/or sensitive information stored on your devices. Locate, secure, (or better yet) remove PII (personally identifiable information) such as your SSN, credit card numbers, and/or bank account information, and do not travel with unencrypted confidential Middlebury information on your devices.
• Physically protect yourself and your devices. Use a laptop lock, avoid unnecessarily displaying identification cards, shred sensitive paperwork before you recycle it, and watch out for “shoulder surfers” at ATM’s or while using your devices in public places.

These are just some of the many things that you can do to travel more safely! For more information about information security, visit our website at http://go.middlebury.edu/infosec.

Much of this content comes from the Awareness and Training Working Group of the EDUCAUSE Higher Education Information Security Council (HEISC) and is then tailored for the Middlebury community.