COMMUNICATIONS & CYBER SECURITY ADVICE

• The information and cyber security levels we enjoy in the UK will not necessarily be the same where you are – in some nations state surveillance is commonplace and devices are at greater risk of being hacked
• Individuals need to take ownership of how they keep devices and passwords secure and be cautious of what they say/do on their devices
• In some countries they can actively interrogate all financial transactions and will often do so to foreign visitors. Details of spending, potentially private addresses, transactional, financial data will be available – consider having a trip credit card/ pre-loaded credit card to use for such travel

• Access to everyday apps (e.g. WhatsApp, Gmail, Facebook, Instagram) is blocked in some countries. App updates provide a hostile state with opportunities to access your device
• Use of VPNs is at your own risk as they are illegal in some countries
• Encryption in many countries is illegal

• Keeping your devices safe at all times is key.
• If your device starts acting strange (e.g. overheating due to background use) stop using it.
• Beware ANY links in ANY format from ANY application

• Ask yourself if you really need/want to take personal device(s)?
• If yes, take only essential devices and consider keeping them offline entirely (i.e. for watching/listening to pre-downloaded content, taking photos)
• Also consider borrowing a phone from your sport or if you have an old spare phone, then using this with a cheap Pay-As-You-Go SIM / e-Sim
• Get yourself a portable charging pack to avoid the use of public charging outlets

• Use different and unique passcodes for unlocking each device you take
• Limit the impact of compromised passwords – CHANGE all your passwords for apps/websites you may log into BEFORE you travel and again AFTER you return
• Create unique passwords (10+ character length) for each app/website
• Consider sharing passwords with trusted family members who could check certain apps for you and pass on essential information, to alleviate your need to log-in

• Limit the data you take overseas – take only essential information on devices/in hard copy, and for unique data sources have a ‘master’ offline copy at home
• Consider removing sensitive/personal data and imagery relating to you/other people (e.g. military personnel/high profile contacts, explicit messages/images) from your devices
• Download music, films or podcasts in advance of travel

• Discuss with your family/close friends how often and in what format you want to communicate
• Think hard about needing to log into your usual WhatsApp account (even on a temporary phone) as your entire contact directory would still be visible to monitoring. Consider using a temporary phone and SIM with a new WhatsApp number to communicate only with specific contacts you add to this phone
• With more sensitive contacts we’d advise using a burner Outlook account for email and Skype (more secure as it doesn’t share contact information with app owner) for calling and instant messaging
• Know that communication in some countries (online and within private comms) should not be critical of it or its people as this may be illegal (and will probably be actively monitored)

• Consider what level of online presence and access you need, if any
• Consider if you need to remotely log-in to UK systems when away (e.g. business emails) – communicating back to systems opens them (and your passwords) up to being exploited – consider enabling a ‘buddy’ to monitor these instead and pass only critical information
• If you must log into apps, do so infrequently and always log out after each use
• Avoid downloading/updating apps unless absolutely 100% essential

• Keep your devices and documents within arm’s length – hotel safes offer limited protection
• Be cautious who you chat online to – only communicate with verified contacts
• Avoid remotely logging-in to UK systems
• Stop using your phone if it acts differently
• Know who to call in the event a device is lost, stolen or not working
• Mark your plug socket so you know it is yours and not an account harvester

• Use charging outlets in public places – carry a portable charging unit instead.
• Use public Wi-Fi networks or computers, e.g. in airports/hotels – they are known for containing malicious software, so only use the trusted Wi-Fi or your mobile data
• Click on anything you were not expecting or can’t authenticate is from a safe source
• Read the above advice again – malicious links can be sent in any platform – we have had instances of them from Instagram and Snapchat

Just to re-iterate – Never plug your phone or device into a public USB socket. This is inherently dangerous and effectively opens up your device to be read.

WiFi systems can track and read your data when onlines

Your USB adapter plug can easily be swapped with what appears to be your adapter but is in fact a cheap and simple way of getting all your data. They are fitted with spyware and a nano sim to transmit information to the hacker. Mark your plugs so you know they are yours.