6 tips for safer international business travel

Travel is an integral part of conducting business in our global economy, and needs to be conducted with the appropriate duty-of-care standards in mind.

Employers should work with employees who will be traveling abroad to ensure that the travelers can stay as safe as possible under challenging conditions.

According to a recent study conducted by the Association of Corporate Travel Executives, Business Traveler magazine and American Express Global Business Travel, the top concerns of business travelers are identity theft, political instability and kidnapping.

The idea of being stranded because of a lockdown or curfew and in-flight terror incident or major health risk such as SARS, Ebola or Zika are among the other major concerns to those traveling abroad for business.

Here are six helpful tips business travelers can use to stay safe during international travels…

1. Protect against theft of personal information

• • Keep copies of all major identification (passport or driver’s license), credit card and travel itinerary and any other valuable documentation.
  • If necessary, email them to yourself so you can have access to the information in the event they get lost or stolen.

Leave a copy of these documents with someone back at the office or at home as well in case you lose both the originals and the copies.

See also: Help your clients prevent tax identity theft

2. Use antivirus, spyware security protection on all devices

• Make sure to use up-to-date antivirus, spyware, security patches and firewalls. Entities in foreign countries have been known to push fake security updates when a user connects to the local network. They then install malware and spyware on the user’s computer.

Be sure to have security software on your tablet and smartphone, too. These devices are also vulnerable and not always as secure as your computer. 

See also: Are you ready for the cyber security talk?