Reinis Nitišs

REINIS NITIŠS INVITES TRAVELERS TO TAKE CARE OF THEIR CYBER-IMMUNITY WHEN TRAVELING!

JĒKABPILS, LATVIA
10/08/2020

At the moment, when planning travels, the main concern is about health safety – is it better to go to a further country or still travel in Latvia, is it better use air services or still drive a car? Whatever your choice of travel destination and type of transport, you should also keep in mind about cyber immunity and “health” when planning a trip – finding hotels, making reservations or transfers online.

Reinis Nitišs, a sportsman and Kaspersky’s ambassador to the Baltic States, resumed active sports after the pandemic and is now going on trips to Lithuania and Estonia.

“I often travel for races or meetings – in a busy season it can be up to 20-30 trips a year. When abroad, I am exposed to an environment that is out of my control. Hotels, airports, race tracks and cafes are the places I spend most of most on the time on my trips and most of those provide an internet connection of some sort, so it is vital for me to keep my data safe with VPN and malware protection. And not only that – I always need to think a step ahead and know where I will be and what gadgets or devices I will need, so I don’t haul around the world more equipment than I need and I can keep it in a safe place,” says Reinis Nitišs.

Kaspersky data show that with the onset of the pandemic and remote work, the number of cyber attacks in the Baltic States increased fivefold. This is a time when people are longing for new impressions and planning longer or slightly longer trips, so it is important to keep in mind that a careless internet user is the real catch for criminals on the internet.

Reinis Nitišs and Kaspersky experts call to remember the following advice that will always be useful while planning and during the travel:

  • When making reservations for hotels, car rental, restaurants – make sure the link is right.
  • Update device applications and antivirus programs before travel.
  • Create secure passwords for devices. Set a secure passwords for your mobile devices and / or laptop.
  • The safest way is to use a VPN while traveling. If it is possible – don’t use public Wi-Fi. Don’t even use hotel-room Wi-Fi unless it is encrypted and password protected.
  • Make a back up for all information of your devices.
  • Avoid sharing details of your trip on social media.
  • Never leave a device unsupervised. That includes in a locked hotel room.
  • Try not to use your personal devices for business and vice versa.
  • To reduce the desire of thieves to visit the hotel room in the absence of the owners, use a sign Please do not disturb.
  • Check your bank statement to check your finances during the trip.
  • Do a malware/virus scan on all devices after trip .
  • Start using “Privacy Checker”, an online tool that was created to help people set up their social media accounts securely.