Travellers urged to scrub laptops
Important files should be scrubbed from laptops before entering a foreign country, computer security experts warn.
And if travellers must bring critical files, be sure they’re encrypted. David Perry, a former computer security adviser for AOL who’s now with Bay Area-based Trend Micro, logs about 300 days a year on the road with his laptop, about half the time overseas.
Despite constant laptop use, he doesn’t store any critical information on it. “I don’t archive my emails, I don’t use Quicken, I don’t access my bank account, I don’t shop from my laptop. My laptop and my credit card are unacquainted,” said Perry.
