Guidelines for international travel to high risk countries
Advice for DCU executives when travelling to high-risk countries
Travel to High-Risk Countries requires special consideration and preparation. It’s important to take the minimum you need in order to get your work done while you’re gone.
The current list of high risk countries can be found here
Computers
- Best: Travel light
We strongly recommend all laptops are backed up and wiped of all university data before you travel and wiped again as you return. ISS can facilitate this secure wiping upon request.
- Minimum: Travel encrypted
If you must travel with your own device, please follow the steps below to ensure your device is adequately protected.
- Verify with ISS that your computer software is current.
- Make sure your computer is fully backed up and encrypted (consult with ISS).
- Remove any documents containing Moderate or High Risk data from your computer.
- When you return, save the documents you created while travelling to another device, completely wipe your computer, and restore it from the backup made before your travel.
Ensuring you have permission to use encryption
To protect University and your own data we advise that you should always use encrypted devices. However, there are potential legal ramifications when entering other countries which may depend on many factors including who you are and what you are entering the country for. A few countries do not allow encryption for personal use at all. Many countries allow encryption for personal use but have laws/regulations that require you to give access to the data on request at borders or by law enforcement. To protect yourself you may need to comply with such regulations.
The website on encryption law linked below may help on what these laws and regulations currently are but it is your responsibility to make sure that you do not break the laws of countries that you travel to.
Mobile phones
- Best: Go without
Consider whether you really need your mobile phone. Will you be making calls? Can you get by with a wi-fi only device (such as an iPad)? Can you get by without a phone for your trip? We are really tied to our phones these days, but perhaps it is better if you can go without travelling to a high risk country.
- Good: Get it there
The next best thing is to use a “burner” (a device you will not use again). This can be a loaner phone borrowed in the country of destination, an unlocked phone with a local SIM card, or a phone you buy or rent at the airport or hotel. Do not sign into any university services from this phone.
- Minimum: Have a plan
If you must use your own phone:- Back it up before you leave
- Enrol it in an international rate plan to avoid incurring exorbitant roaming charges
- Save your data, reset to factory defaults, and restore your backup when you return.
Access to essential emails
We advise that you do the following:
- Set up an alternate non DCU email address: e.g. Create a Yahoo, Gmail, live.com email account
- Forward all emails from your DCU mail a/c to the alternate non DCU email address
- Only use this alternate non DCU email address to access your current/recent emails for the duration of your stay
Be cautious with public charging / wifi services
- Ensure to use the DCU Pulse VPN service at all times when connecting to Wifi abroad
- To avoid connecting your device to a third-party computer inadvertently, do not charge your phone or tablet via public kiosks, such as those in airports
- In addition, in public settings, pay attention to those around you, especially if you access any sensitive documents or input passwords to grant access to apps, servers, or cloud-based platforms
- With that said, ideally, while out of the country, do not handle sensitive data or emails
Ensure that WiFi, GPS, and Bluetooth are disabled if not in use.
You should disable WiFi, GPS, and Bluetooth functions as well as unused applications on your devices when they are not in use. These services could be used to launch attacks against your device and introduce malware to your system.
China: a special travel situation
What to expect while you’re travelling to the People's Republic of China:
- Access to services that we take for granted like Gmail, Google apps, Wikipedia, and Yahoo Web Mail are often blocked altogether or filtered.
- Skype connections may be monitored by the government.
- Popular Western social media and messaging platforms like WhatsApp are inaccessible in China. Chinese residents use alternative apps like WeChat to communicate with people outside the country.
- Those using VPNs reported that they are often cut off for hours at a time.
- Hotel staff and government officials can access hotel room safes, so don't expect that a computer or mobile device left in a hotel safe will be secure.
NOTE: When travelling to China, a device is under your “effective control” only when it is on your person. Any time a device is unattended, it is no longer under your effective control!
Know who to contact
Despite your best efforts, a device may become lost or stolen. Before you leave, touch base with ISS as to what to do in the event a device is lost or stolen.
If you do lose control of a device, please contact ISS promptly.