Prepare Your Phone for Holiday Travel

Published on November 24, 2014

We’ve arrived to prime holiday season. Rest, relaxation, and family time await you – most likely after a little necessary traveling. Before you pack your bags, optimize all of your electronic devices for the journey. These tips, originally shared by Lookout, will help keep your information safe and sound and maybe even improve your overall traveling experience.

Keep Important Phone Numbers Handy

There’s nothing more stressful than trying to track down phone numbers for an airline or a hotel while you’re pressed for time during your journey. Save yourself a headache by storing important contact information directly in your address book before you leave for your trip. This includes personal numbers of your relatives, doctor, or credit card company. If possible, create a separate list on your phone specifically for your trip to keep things organized.

Ensure Finances Are In Order

There is a good chance you’ll be using unsecured internet connections while you’re away from your usual internet source. Using an unsecured connection puts your information at risk. In order to avoid using banking apps or any website which requires a credit card number, plan to schedule your payment, mobile deposits, and purchases before your trip.

Create a Secure Passcode for Your Phone

Protect your phone by creating a strong pin number passcode. This will be your first line of defense if your phone gets lost or stolen. Create a strong, unpredictable passcode (aka not 1111 or 4567), and set your screen to auto-lock within 5 minutes. If your phone comes with other more secure passcode locking mechanisms, like shape passwords or fingerprint reading, these are even better.

Back Everything Up

If you haven’t been backing up your data in the past, now is a great time to start. The risk for data being lost or stolen during your travels is higher than normal (read: phone being dropped in pool). Even if you aren’t interested in fully backing up all your devices (even though it can take as little as 5 minutes) at the very least make sure you’ve made a copy of everything that is important to you – photos, documents, music, etc. A service like Lookout is a pain-free way to do this.

Check Your Roaming Policy

If you’re going to another country, protect yourself from a massive phone bill upon your return by checking your phone carrier’s roaming policy. This will help you plan a wi-fi vs. data connection strategy for your trip, and make the appropriate arrangements with those you’ll need to contact during your time away.

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