Another tip in a series provided by the 
Offices of Information Systems & Computing 
and Audit, Compliance & Privacy.

When traveling internationally, help minimize your risks by taking these important and useful steps.

• Safeguard your personal and  physical security

Enroll in STEP (Smart Traveler Enrollment Program): https://step.state.gov/

By registering your trip with the nearest US Embassy abroad, you can learn about safety conditions in your country of travel, and be contacted by the Embassy in case of an emergency.

Review current alerts and warnings from the State Department for your country of travel.

Register your trip with Penn Global’s Global Activities Registry, a central resource for Penn affiliates traveling abroad.

• Safeguard your electronic  on devices

Keep your personal and Penn work-related information safe: consider bringing a “sanitized” or re-imaged device that doesn’t contain any sensitive information whenever traveling abroad, particularly to regions where the practice of hacking or installing spyware on smartphones, tablets, and other computing devices is widespread. Even if spyware is installed on your “sanitized” device while abroad, you can restore it to your normal working copy when you return home. Consult with your Local Support Provider for assistance.

In the US, you should also be aware that your person and/or belongings may be searched at border crossings. While chances are low, US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents could ask you to unlock your devices to analyze them. If you refuse, CBP may seize your devices to search and extract information from them, and may not return them for weeks or longer. Bringing “sanitized” devices for travel abroad could help you at the US border when you return.

Consult the following links for more in-depth information about securing your personal safety and devices for international travel:

• ISC Information Security Best Practices for Data Security on Foreign Travel

• FBI Safety and Security for the Business Professional Traveling Abroad

For additional tips, see the One Step Ahead link on the Information Security website.