Anytime you travel you give up some expectations to privacy. Between airport security, crowded gates, and super cramped airplanes, it’s a little hard to feel like you have your own space. And yet creating space for yourself can lead to a much calmer, more rewarding experience–even if it’s just the illusion. Here are a few ways to keep your privacy during business travel.
Use a privacy screen. Regardless of whether you’re working on confidential material, looking at pictures of your family, or playing on Facebook, you don’t want people looking over your shoulder at your laptop. Use a privacy screen to keep the contents of your screen just for you.
Wear noise-canceling headphones. The best way to make it feel like you’re all alone in the middle of a crowd: noise-canceling headphones. Put them on and the outside world just fades away, including loud neighbors, crying babies, and rattling carts. Obviously they’re great for watching movies or listening to music or podcasts, but I use them to help me sleep too. And on that note…
Don an eye mask. If you want to get some rest mid-flight an eye mask is the only way to block out the world. You can’t control your seatmate’s reading light or open window coverings, but with an eye mask you’ll never know they’re there.
Digital privacy. We’re in a whole new age of digital privacy these days. Of course technology makes many things so convenient; unfortunately it also opens us to some, ahem, alarming privacy intrusions. Did you know sending anonymous intimate photos to random people is a thing? No thank you! One way to protect yourself from this is to either disable or restrict Airdrop (on iPhones). Also always use your corporate VPN when using public wifi on your computer. If you don’t have VPN through your company look into a personal VPN.
Readers, how do you keep your privacy during business travel?
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Don’t ever do personal email, texts or browsing on a corporate phone or computer. You should have no expectation of privacy on those devices. Bring along your own for private use, even if it means putting the laptops in checked luggage.
@Nick great point! Companies can and do inspect what their employees are doing on work devices.
Oh, I really love this topic! I would love to hear what people do to get privacy on business calls taken in the airport. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had to duck into odd corners to whisper our company credit card number to a vendor and hope no one was listening.
I don’t have any great ideas to share, but I do always plan a little bit of private time for myself after a trip to recharge
Excellent advice, as always. As a privacy fanatic who loves to travel, I love that you took this right down to the essentials. A lot of people who are uncomfortable in crowded spaces will be much better off by creating their own little privacy bubble.
Using VPN is key when connecting to strange wifi. Also, never charge your phone with a USB wall plug. Hackers can connect to your phone via that USB portal. Always use your little charger and plug into the wall socket instead.
To prevent hacking from a USB wall plug, you can also use a usb “condom”, such as:
https://www.amazon.com/PortaPow-Charge-Block-Adaptor-SmartCharge/dp/B00T0DW3F8/ref=pd_sim_107_3?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B00T0DW3F8&pd_rd_r=4WZR2HFSEZ0RDF6R2E6Y&pd_rd_w=slGlU&pd_rd_wg=M3e2C&psc=1&refRID=4WZR2HFSEZ0RDF6R2E6Y
Great article! VPN is very important especially when using open wifi networks at airports and cafes.
Nice list thanks for sharing! I have a free Priority Pass membership included on one of my credit cards, and it’s such a bliss walking into one of those quiet oasis during a long layover. Great Wifi, free food and drinks and a comfortable, silent place to get work done. Highly recommended!
Great list. Everyone should think about their privacy and safety while traveling. Not only personal safety but also digital safety. I recommend to always store all your data in the cloud, for example Google drive or DropBox. It’s also a good idea to automatically synch your phone photos and Whatsapp/Viber messages to the cloud every time you are connected to Wifi. It’s very easy to setup.
Thanks for sharing!
-Karen