Here are a few tips on how to reduce that risk.

1. Set up automatic locking

   Never leave your phone or laptop unlocked in public places, for example on a table in a restaurant, café or bar.

   Set your phone to lock automatically after a reasonably short time. One minute should be about right: not too long, but also not so short that it makes normal use annoying.

   Get into the habit of locking your laptop every time you step away from it. Even if you only get up from your café table to get some sugar. On Windows and most Linux distributions, you can use the Win + L keyboard shortcut. On a MacBook, Command + Control + Q should do the same.

2. Use a good lock

   When travelling, use fingerprint unlock or Face ID for your phone or laptop whenever possible. During the rest of the year, I usually recommend using a sufficiently long and unique password or PIN. But on holiday, the bigger problem is often the number of cameras around you and tourists filming everything they see. It is easy not to notice that someone is watching or recording you while you type your password.

   If you do use a password or PIN, avoid the obvious ones like “password” or “iloveyou”. PINs like “0000” or “1234” are not a great idea either.

   Unlocking your phone with a pattern, by connecting dots on the screen, can also be risky. Your fingers leave traces on the display.

   Tip: Use passwords in Czech or Slovak.

3. Be careful with public Wi-Fi networks

   You know how it goes. You land in a country outside the EU and need to read an e-mail, post a photo on Instagram or find accommodation. And you do not really want to pay for data roaming. So, right there at the airport, you search for the nearest public and free Wi-Fi network and connect to it.

   And guess what? Hackers know that people do this at airports. It is not difficult for them to create a Wi-Fi network called something like “Airport Free Internet” from their own device. Then they just wait for someone to connect and start collecting data.

   The same applies to restaurants and cafés. That is why it is usually better to pay extra for roaming. And if that is really not possible for some reason, at least use a VPN. It encrypts your data so that an attacker cannot read it.

4. Do not tell the world that your home is empty

   The urge to show your friends that you are enjoying your holiday can be hard to resist, but try to wait. A photo from Bibione or Mont Blanc can be a great tip for a burglar, who will immediately know that no one is home to disturb them.

   You can upload photos to Instagram or Facebook after you return. And you will probably enjoy your holiday without social networks much more anyway.

   Tip: Be offline. It is nice

5. Be careful with photos of children

   Photos of your children from the beach that you share on social networks may end up on websites used by paedophiles. Such photos can be a strong attraction for them. If you want to share these photos with family or friends, send them by e-mail, or even better, through a messenger app, ideally via Signal Messenger.

6. Enable disk encryption

   If you lose your laptop during your holiday, it is definitely better if the data on the disk cannot be read by someone who might misuse it.

   On Windows, you can use BitLocker. On Apple devices, there is FileVault, and on Linux there is LUKS. Alternatively, you can use the open source software VeraCrypt.

7. Border checks and adult content

   In some countries, border officers may ask you for passwords to your devices or even your social media accounts. If you are travelling to such a country, be careful about what you have stored on your device. There are countries where saved adult content may get you into trouble.

   Many people travelling to these countries use a different, “clean” laptop and phone.

8. Back up before your holiday

   If you lose your device during your holiday, a backup of your files or contacts will definitely come in handy. Do not underestimate it.

If your phone or laptop is actually lost or stolen, here are a few tips on how to minimise the damage.

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1. You can choose your username and password (only lowercase letters and up to three characters long), then click the “Register” button. This simulates registration on a server (the name and password are stored in the database).
2. Click the “Run” button: this will trigger the attack – the program tests the character combinations in the “Password” field in the “Login” section (simulation of the login form).
3. Once you’ve found the combination, you can try logging in with the “Login” button.

Basic info about creating passwords below.

Register

Choose username:

Password (max. 3 lowercase letters)

* Brute-force attack is time and resources consuming, it would take too long in the web browser

Register

Login

Username

Password

Login

Brute-force

Run
Stop

Server database

Username

Password

 

 

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You need to have javascript enabled. In case the form is not working you can visit the site directly: https://haveibeenpwned.com/

What to do in case your data breached?

• Don’t panic!
• Change the password on affected website
• If you use the same password on other service/webpage change it there too (you should use unique password for every service/webpage).
• Turn on two- (multi-) factor authentication if it is possible.

If you don’t know how to do these tnings we can do it together. Contact me for personal consultancy or visit workshop where you can learn how to do it.

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