Are You a Peeper? I’ll Admit It. I’m a Peeper.
A survey conducted by Intel Corporation and TNS found that 46% of US vacationers say their biggest pet peeve about traveling with their mobile devices relates to the security of the device that could potentially compromising their personal information.
I hear ya! One doesn’t get to platinum frequent flyer status by sitting at home watching American Idol. And when I fly, I like to see what other travelers have on their laptop screens so I can point out the lack of security, especially of those who should know better.
So it comes as no surprise to me that 29% of travelers have caught someone peeping at their screen. “Peeping-techs” are one of the top pet peeves for travelers. Half of American travelers (49%) admit getting annoyed when the behaviors of others compromise their traveling comfort and security, including screen glancing.
Despite “peeping-techs” being an annoyance when it happens to us, more than half (51%) of young adults admit to peeping at someone else’s screen.
The other pet peeve around device security is worrying that the device may be lost or stolen. Even though there’s this concern, 26% of travelers fail to take basic security precautions and admit to security risks including entering credit card details in public, using unsecured Wi-Fi networks, viewing sensitive documents on their device and even leaving their device unattended.
Below is an infographic that Intel created on travelers concerns with their Ultrabooks™, laptops and tablets.
Protect yourself and your devices when traveling:
- Be aware of your surroundings and use privacy screen shields when viewing sensitive documents
- Use safe online practices such as accessing protected Wi-Fi networks
- Consider a device with anti-theft technology like an Intel-inspired Ultrabook™ or use a mobile security application like McAfee Mobile Security that includes anti-theft features or get protection for all your devices with McAfee All Access.
For more information on the study, visit here.
Robert Siciliano is an Online Security Evangelist to McAfee. Watch him discussing information he found on used electronic devices YouTube. (Disclosures)
Read more: Are You a Peeper? I’ll Admit It. I’m a Peeper.