Are you a small business owner looking forward to visiting with your family over the holidays? Or, perhaps you're going on a hard-earned vacation. Whatever your reason for traveling, if you're leaving your business unattended, it's important to make sure that both your physical and your virtual office are secure for the duration of your trip.
If you're like most business owners, you'll bring your laptop and phone with you while you're traveling —and if they contain any business data, you need to protect them, too.
- Minimize unauthorized access to your devices. Lock and password protect your devices. If possible, enable two-factor authentication.
- Enable encryption. It's wise to encrypt your devices so the data stored on them can't be deciphered without the password.
- Use a VPN service. Instead of using any public or untrusted Wi-Fi networks, invest in a VPN service that ensures an encrypted, safe connection whenever you're online.
Properly securing both your physical and your virtual office while you're traveling will go a long way toward protecting your business. And that, in turn, will give you the peace of mind you need to enjoy your trip so you can return to the office rested and relaxed once the holidays are over.