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Stay in touch with your friends and family without jeopardizing the information in your email account by setting up a temporary travel account.

There are several free and quick ways to do this without having to create a huge number of additional accounts.

Create A Travel Email Account - Open a new email account with your current provider.? The new account should be your regular email address with “trav” at the end of it (i.e. “cindy@yahoo.com” becomes “cindytrav@yahoo.com”).

• Hotmail and Yahoo - These two email providers don’t have forwarding capabilities, but the free download GetMail can do it for you. Have all of your emails forwarded to the new account to protect your privacy abroad.

Set up a vacation response (Gmail can do this too) telling your friends and family that you’re out traveling and to contact your ‘trav’ address.

• Gmail - Forwarding capabilities are built it as well strong filtering capabilities (Settings > Filters).

In your primary account setup a filter for any words, people, or businesses you don’t want to be bothered by while on vacation. Have only the email you want delivered to your “trav” account forwarded.

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The TSA is testing out brighter uniforms, updated terrorist lists, and 30-millimeter wave machines that can see through clothing to ease the security line experience for passengers.

Airlines, which check passenger names against the list, will now be allowed to accept dates of birth from passengers to more thoroughly check information against the watch lists, Chertoff said. Once passengers have proven that they are not suspected terrorists, they will be able to print boarding passes at kiosks or at home, rather than going through a check-in line, Chertoff said.

Which makes me wonder how someone “proves” they are not a terrorist. None of these new features, being tested at BWI, make me feel more at ease or secure. What is “the security of the future” that makes you the least comfortable?

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[photo by: vidrio]

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Travelers going through security airlines everywhere in the US may have their laptops searched or confiscated by the TSA for any reason. Other countries like England, Israel, and many more can do the same.

Password protecting your laptop won’t help either because if you don’t provide it when asked they’ll keep the machine. (And just crack it later.)

Fortunately for us there is powerful and free technology that can not only protect your files but make it look like you aren’t - no matter what skill level you possess.

Create An Encrypted Folder - Download the powerful Truecrypt and create an encrypted volume by following a simple wizard. Then copy all of your personal files there.

• What Is It? A Truecrypt volume is an encrypted folder that can only be opened with a password.
• Skill Level Required: Intermediate

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Increase the security of your wireless connections and bypass international blocks of websites by downloading Hotspot Shield. The program connects you to the Hotspot Shield virtual private network (VPN) located in the US potentially getting you around regional blocks of popular websites.

Netflix for example doesn’t allow users to access their “play now” feature which lets you watch movies in your queue on your PC. A connection through the Hotspot Shield VPN will trick this and many other websites into thinking you’re located in the US.

This hack didn’t work for me each time and the connections were less than stable, but tolerable for the most part. Hotspot Shield also purports to give you “unbreakable” secure wireless access but doesn’t tell you how. If you’re connecting through a fairly reputable wireless connection (like an airport or T-Mobile hot spot) most of your important data like passwords will already be encrypted by the websites you visit.

Avoid any computer-to-computer networks and keep your online accounts safe at Internet cafes with these 12 applications you can run from a USB drive. The advertisement heavy Hotspot Shield is a free download, for both PC and Mac.

Thanks Felipe!

EDITED [5/31]: Hotspot Shield works for both PC and Mac and is Lifehacker’s featured download today.

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Recently my lapse in judgment lead to my beloved Garmin nuvi 250 being stolen out of my car. It was a smash and grab on a busy street in broad daylight - an hour after I had parked my car.

Here’s what I knew (and should have done) to prevent being a target and learned afterwards.

Before It’s Stolen

• Never, Ever, Leave Your GPS Out - This is an obvious one but practice it religiously. Never leave your GPS or other electronic devices (laptops, satellite radios, photo equipment) out. All it take is one goodie to entice a thief and then they’re all gone.
• Wipe Off Suction Cup Marks - Paula bow recommends bringing some wet toilettes to conceal this GPS giveaway.

GPS devices use suction cups that leave big rings on the windshield. Even if you hide your system, you run the risk of becoming a target unless you wipe off the telltale suction marks. Pack a few wet towelettes, and when the ring becomes noticeable, wipe down your windshield.

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Staying overnight in an airport can be a fun adventure and save you money but leaves you vulnerable to theft. Many opportunistic thieves (including airport staff) may try to make off with your bags as you sleep. A good way to prevent this is to bring along a laptop lock (an essential if you bring a laptop) and lace it through the handles of your bags.

Make sure that each suitcase, backpack, and gift bag handle is connected by the lock and then secured to your leg or around your wrist. This simple technique will help to alert you if your bags are moved by anyone.

As much as possible, try to sleep on your bags - use your suitcase to put you feet upon. Although any lock will do, try to find retractable ones to reduce the amount of slack so that you’ll be sensitive to any movements. Finding a good place to sleep, setting an alarm every 2 hours to wake up, and staying connected with your baggage will help reduce you being picked out by a crook.

[photo by: Satoly]

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The US State Department has been issuing travel warnings for various countries since 1978. The premise was to protect US citizens from being harmed, robbed, or killed while traveling abroad.

The problem is that State Department warnings can be discouraging and difficult to understand since they encompass entire countries and last for long periods of time. Clever travelers can learn to read between the lines before they nix an entire trip.

• Read The Entire Travel Warning - State Department travel warnings encompass a country even if there are only problems in a few cities or a remote region. The UK’s Foreign and Commonwealth Office issues warning that specify against travel to an entire country (Iraq) or only to certain parts (Philippines).

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Beware if you are pulled over for a traffic violation police have the authority to search your cell phone and any other electronic device you may have in your vehicle.

Your text messages, call histories, browsing history, downloaded emails and photos. In a recent academic paper, South Texas Assistant Professor Adam Gershowitz explains that because many traffic violations are arrestable offenses, just as a cop could search your pockets for drugs, said cop can also search your pockets for a smartphone and go through all its contents.

Your best bet is not to keep these devices in sight if you see the flashing lights in your rear view mirror.

[photo by: KB35]

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The CLEAR program, which essentially fast lanes registered travelers through airport security, is expanding to airports across the nation. CLEAR costs about $100; and your background and biometric data. The pending implementation of CLEAR in Denver sparked some interesting comments between ::future gringo:: and I.

I think it??s amazing how willing people (especially in America) are to give up their personal freedoms, privacy, and rights to the government.

Nobody trusts the government with their tax dollars, but gives in to every asinine security screening; phone taps, and massive databases that contain records of anything imaginable.

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