The Business Owner’s Guide To Holiday Travel (That Won’t End In A Data Breach)

You’re three hours into a five-hour drive to visit family for the holidays. Your daughter asks, “Can I play Roblox on your laptop?” Your work laptop. The one with client files, financial data and access to your entire business. You’re exhausted from packing, you’ve got three more hours to go and, honestly, keeping her entertained sounds pretty good right now. What’s the harm?

Here’s the thing: Holiday travel creates security vulnerabilities you don’t face in your normal routine. You’re distracted, tired, connecting to unfamiliar networks and often mixing family activities with “just checking in on work.” Whether you’re traveling for business, pleasure or that awkward combination of both, here’s how to protect your data without ruining anyone’s holiday.

Before You Leave: The 15-Minute Prep

Take 15 minutes before your trip to set yourself up for success:

Device basics:

• Install all security updates
• Back up important files to the cloud
• Enable automatic screen locking (two minutes max)
• Activate “Find My Device” on phones and laptops
• Charge your portable power bank
• Pack your own charging cables and adapters

The family talk:

• Explain which devices are okay for kids to use (and which aren’t)
• Set up a family iPad or secondary device for entertainment
• Create a separate user account on your laptop if kids need to use it

Pro tip: If your kids need device time on the road, bring a tablet that’s NOT connected to your work accounts. A $150 iPad is cheaper than a data breach.

Hotel WIFI: Everyone’s Using It Wrong

Your family checks into the hotel. Within minutes, everyone’s connected to the WIFI – phones, tablets, laptops, gaming devices. Your teenager is streaming Netflix. Your spouse is checking e-mail. You’re trying to review that proposal before tomorrow’s meeting.

Here’s the problem: Hotel networks are shared by hundreds of guests. And not everyone on that network has good intentions.

Real scenario: A family connected to what looked like their hotel’s WIFI network. It was actually a fake network set up by someone in the parking lot. For two days, everything they did online – passwords, credit card numbers, e-mails – was being captured.

How to stay safe:

Verify the network name – Ask the front desk for the exact WIFI name. Don’t guess.

Use a VPN if accessing work – If you need to check work e-mail or access company files, use a VPN. It encrypts your connection.

Use your phone’s hotspot for sensitive stuff – Banking, client data or anything confidential? Use your phone’s mobile data instead of hotel WIFI.

Keep work and play separate – Kids streaming cartoons on hotel WIFI? Fine. You accessing client information? Use your hotspot

The “Can I Use Your Laptop?” Problem

Your work computer has access to everything – e-mail, bank accounts, client files, business systems. Your kids want to watch YouTube, play games or video chat with friends.

Why this matters: Kids accidentally download things. They click on pop-ups. They share passwords with friends. They don’t log out of accounts. None of this is malicious – it’s just being a kid. But on your work device, it’s a security risk.

The solution:

Just say no to work devices – “This is my work computer, but you can use [other device].” Enforce this consistently.

If you absolutely must share:

• Create a separate user account with restricted permissions
• Supervise what they’re doing
• Don’t let them download anything
• Don’t save their passwords on your device
• Clear browsing history after use

Better option: Bring a dedicated family device for travel. Even an older tablet or laptop that doesn’t connect to work accounts.

Streaming on Hotel TVs: The Log-Out Problem

Your family wants to watch a movie on Netflix in the hotel room. Someone logs into your account on the smart TV. You check out the next morning and forget to log out.

What happens next: The next guest now has access to your Netflix account. But worse, if you used the same password for other accounts (you didn’t, right?), they might try it elsewhere.

The fix:

• Use your own device and cast to the TV (safer)
• If you must log into the TV, set a phone reminder to log out before checkout
• Better yet: Download shows to your devices before travel and skip the TV entirely

Never log into the following on hotel TVs:

• Banking apps
• Work accounts
• E-mail
• Social media
• Any account with payment information saved

What to Do If A Device Goes Missing

Holiday travel is chaotic. Devices get left in restaurants, hotel rooms, rental cars and airport security bins.

If your device goes missing...

Within the first hour:

1. Use “Find My Device” to locate it
2. .If you can’t recover it quickly, remotely lock it
3. Change passwords for critical accounts from another device
4. .Contact your IT person or MSP to revoke access to company systems
5. If the device contained sensitive business data, notify affected parties

What your device should have BEFORE travel:

• Remote tracking enabled
• Strong password protection
• Automatic data encryption
• Remote wipe capability

Family member lost their device? Same rules apply. Lock it remotely, change passwords, locate it if possible.

The Rental Car Data Trap

You connect your phone to the rental car’s Bluetooth to play music or use navigation. The car stores your contacts, recent calls and sometimes even text message previews.

When you return the car, that data often stays there for the next driver to access.

The 30-second fix before returning the car:

• Delete your phone from the car’s Bluetooth settings
• Clear recent destinations from the GPS
• Or better yet: Use an aux cable or don’t connect at all

The “Working Vacation” Boundary Problem

You promised this was family time, but you’ve checked your e-mail 47 times, taken three “quick” work calls and spent an hour on your laptop while everyone else played mini-golf.

Aside from the family tension, constantly switching between work and vacation mode makes you less vigilant about security. You’re distracted, rushing and more likely to click on something you shouldn’t or connect to a network you shouldn’t trust.

Real talk: If you can’t fully unplug, set clear boundaries:

• Check work e-mail twice daily at specific times
• Use your phone’s hotspot, not hotel WIFI, for work tasks
• Work in your hotel room, not public spaces where screens are visible
• Be fully present when you’re with family – not half-working

The best security practice? Actually take time off. Your business won’t collapse in a week, and you’ll be more alert to security threats when you’re not exhausted

The Holiday Travel Security Mindset

Here’s the reality: Separating work and family during holiday travel is messy. Sometimes your kid really does need to use your laptop. Sometimes you really do need to check that urgent e-mail while your spouse is driving. Life happens.

The goal isn’t perfection – it’s being intentional about risk: The goal isn’t perfection – it’s being intentional about risk:

• Prepare devices before you leave
• Understand which activities are risky (hotel WIFI for banking) vs. low-risk (using your hotspot to check e-mail)
• Create barriers between work data and family activities when possible
• Have a plan if something goes wrong
• Know when to say, “Not on this device,” and actually mean it

Make This Holiday Memorable for The Right Reasons

The holidays should be about spending time with people you care about – not dealing with a data breach or explaining to your clients why their information was compromised.

A little preparation and a few simple rules can protect your business without ruining anyone’s vacation. Your family gets their holiday. Your business stays secure. Everyone wins.

Want help setting up travel security protocols for your team (and yourself)? Book a free consultation with us. We’ll help you create practical policies that protect your business without making travel impossible.

Schedule your free security consultation

Because the best holiday memory shouldn’t be “Remember when Dad’s laptop got hacked?”