[July 02, 2018] |
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Norton by Symantec: Don't Be a Victim of Summertime Cyber Crime
Summer is here, school is out, and as the height of summer travel
approaches, Norton by Symantec (News - Alert) (NASDAQ: SYMC) today released guidelines
to help travelers protect their devices, data, and privacy while
traveling.
Most summer vacationers are concerned with sunscreen, passports, and
phone chargers, and cyber criminals are the farthest thing from their
minds. In fact, 73 percent of traveling Americans don't use a Virtual
Private Network (VPN) to protect their internet connection, and a
whopping 92 percent potentially put their personal information at risk
while using public Wi-Fi1.
"As the Independence Day holiday approaches, those traveling need to be
extra vigilant about security threats while away from home," said Kevin
Haley, director of security response at Norton by Symantec. "In this
connected world, it's not enough to just lock up the house. It's
important to carefully protect everything from your identity and privacy
to your data and devices while on vacation."
Norton by Symantec recommends travelers follow the below guidelines to
help protect their devices, data and privacy during vacation.
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Beware of online travel scams: Travel deals that appear too
good to be true usually are. Use the official website of the hotel,
airline or rental car company to book your reservations. If you're not
sure it's the right website, call the company to verify.
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Don't broadcast your plans or locations: Vacation photos are an
advertisement you're gone. First, update your privacy settings on
social media to ensure only trusted friends and family can view your
profile. Even then, avoid sharing specific dates. Never post pictures
of itineraries or flight tickets. And remember: a harmless photo
tagged to Antigua immediately alerts criminals to your empty home.
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Surf safely: It's easy to let your guard down when entering the
plush lobby of a beautiful resort. If possible, avoid connecting to
public Wi-Fi at hotels, airports, or in restaurants. Anyone sitting
nearby with simple hacking equipment can see and grab the logins,
passwords, and data you type or see on your screen while surfing the
web. When you do connect, use a trusted VPN to connect to the
Internet. This will help encrypt all communication so attackers can't
view it.
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Leave Bluetooth behind: Bluetooth is great in the car or at
home, where it's safe to communicate with other electronic devices.
However, most of us forget to turn Bluetooth off when in public
places, especially on vacation. With Bluetooth connectivity left open,
anyone sitting in a hotel lobby or nearby coffee shop can potentially
pick u that signal and gain access to your phone. It happens suddenly
and without your knowledge. So say goodbye to Bluetooth while on
vacation.
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Use a credit card instead of a debit card: You're not held
responsible for unauthorized credit card purchases (beyond a nominal
fee in some cases), but a thief armed with your stolen debit card
information could wipe out your entire bank balance, at least until an
investigation is completed. Even better, consider using an online or
mobile payment service such as Apple (News - Alert) Pay, Android Pay or PayPal.
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Remain vigilant when it comes to your credit cards: Before you
go on vacation, alert your credit card companies to your travel plans
and monitor your accounts daily for suspicious activity. During your
trip, only use the credit cards and IDs that are absolutely necessary
and secure your devices in the hotel safe. In addition to
pickpocketing, thieves target travelers via card skimmers at gas pumps
and ATMs. Skimmers are on the rise, stealing credit card or debit card
information from unknowing travelers. Often, inspecting an ATM or gas
station pump will not help you identify the skimmers that are placed
inside the terminals. With gas stations, many times the skimmer is
inside the pump making it virtually impossible to see.
For more travel tips and digital safety resources, please visit Norton
by Symantec's Internet
Security Center.
About Symantec
Symantec Corporation (NASDAQ: SYMC), the world's leading cyber security
company, helps organizations, governments and people secure their most
important data wherever it lives. Organizations across the world look to
Symantec for strategic, integrated solutions to defend against
sophisticated attacks across endpoints, cloud and infrastructure.
Likewise, a global community of more than 50 million people and families
rely on Symantec's Norton suite of products for protection at home and
across their devices. Symantec operates one of the world's largest
civilian cyber intelligence networks, allowing it to see and protect
against the most advanced threats. For additional information, please
visit www.symantec.com or
connect with us on Facebook, Twitter,
and LinkedIn.
NOTE TO EDITORS: If you would like additional information on Symantec
Corporation and its products, please visit the Symantec News Room at http://www.symantec.com/news.
All prices noted are in U.S. dollars and are valid only in the United
States.
Symantec, the Symantec logo and the Checkmark logo are trademarks or
registered trademarks of Symantec Corporation or its affiliates in the
U.S. and other countries. Other names may be trademarks of their
respective owners.
1 2017 Norton Wi-Fi Risk Report: Summary of U.S. Results, https://www.symantec.com/content/dam/symantec/docs/reports/2017-norton-wifi-risk-report-us-results-en.pdf
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180702005836/en/
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