Security expert Robert Siciliano explains how public Wi-Fi at hotels and airports exposes travelers to data theft. An Intel Security survey found two-thirds of Americans want to unplug on vacation, but less than half actually do. Those who disconnect report 68% higher enjoyment and 88% stress-free trips.
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Good morning.
Good morning to you.
You know, uh, not something people like to hear about, but it is something you hear about all the time. We are living in such a plugged-in world. Every time you go to dinner, you look around, everybody's on their cell phone.
Everybody's on their phone. They're not where they're supposed to be, which is engaged with the person sitting across the table from them, uh, or in the lounge chair next to them while they're on vacation. And while you're on vacation, the risk here is that obviously, you know, you're not gonna enjoy yourself as much. You're gonna get stressed out while you're sitting in that lounge chair on that beach, checking in work email and getting stressed out by a work situation that's thousands of miles away from you. And on top of that, we're putting our data and our digital devices at risk because usually when we're in a hotel or airport or a resort, We're on unprotected free Wi-Fi, and that unprotected free Wi-Fi allows criminals to be able to sniff out our data while we're on that device.
Yeah, you know, that's a great point, Robert, and I don't think a lot of people really think about that when we are all so plugged in. And once that information is out there, it's out there, right?
Most people at this point should consider their data has been breached. With over a billion records compromised in the past couple of years, our information really is out there. But you can certainly reduce risk by engaging in, you know, basic cyber hygiene like password protecting your device so if it's lost or stolen nobody can just get access to your email. Also making sure to have different passwords across all the different websites that you're on. Having, you know, password reuse is a big problem. Different passwords for every website. Updating your device's operating system, updating your device's antivirus, antispyware, anti-phishing, and firewall. And overall, having what's called a VPN, a virtual private network, which is a software that locks down your Wi-Fi on unencrypted open free Wi-Fi.
Yeah, and it's funny how often this topic comes up, and you have to wonder, is anyone listening? I mean, you're divulging some staggering statistics, and personal information is at breach. If that doesn't make people pay attention and start to listen, I don't know what will.
Pretty important. Agreed. At the same time, you know, you're on vacation. The study showed that as many as two-thirds of Americans wanted to unplug, but less than half were successful at it. But when the people who responded said that they actually did unplug, you know, 68% said that they enjoyed their vacation that much more, and 88% said they had a stress-free vacation.
Well, what's the first step, Robert, for our viewers who say, okay, I wanna do this, I wanna unplug, I wanna learn to just relax more. What do you suggest we do? Just leave the phones at home?
I say lock them in the hotel safe. Just do it, right? If you lock it in the hotel safe, you're going to detox, right, while you're soaking in the sun, while you're enjoying your family time, while you're playing with the kids in the pool, right? And just don't pick up that device for days at a time. And you'll see that you won't even miss it. When you pick it up, when you're back in the airport, you know, halfway home, then you deal with all of life's issues that popped up while you were gone. Otherwise, if somebody really wants you bad enough, they'll find you. They'll call the hotel resort and they'll track you down. You're not going to miss a beat by leaving that device inside the safe while you're on vacation.
You got a great point. You got to learn to disconnect and Think about what we did before cell phones and iPads. We survived, right? We're here.
Yes, check out Intel Security at intel.com.
Alright, Robert, thank you so much. Head to our website, we'll have all that information posted right there at fox4morningblend.com.
