I’m going on a work trip to China next month, three days in Beijing. A colleague yesterday started regaling me with scare stories about computer and mobile phone security, and having done a bit of searching around it seems he’s not alone. I’ve found several university websites where they advise their staff not to take laptops or mobiles because of the risk of hacking, to set up disposable email accounts, not to connect back to the university network via VPN, not to switch on mobile phones, etc.

This all sounds a bit tin hat to me. I’m an academic with no corporate secrets or anything dodgy on my computer, and I suspect I’m at just as much of a risk of someone installing a keylogger on my laptop via the wi-fi in a London cafe as I am at a decent hotel in Beijing. Does anyone have any experience of this? Unless there’s a good argument to the contrary I’ll be taking a MacBook Air (running FileVault), iPad, and iPhone.

there are two types of companies in the world.

those who know they have been hacked by the chinese, and those who don’t.

Take a Chromebook. Or – boot the Mac from a read-only USB.

It’s much the same thing.

I hear a lot of scare stories about China but from experience of working there I have found that just using your normal security procedures and just not accessing any personal sites when traveling (bank, personal email etc) I have not encountered any issues.
I suspect you are just at risk as you are in India, Singapore and elsewhere.

Any need to take all 3 devices? I’d probably take what I needed and not bother with the rest

It was covered some time ago on Bruce Schneier’s blog. This was top result from a quick search. I suggest you take a better look on there…

https://www.schneier.com/blog/archives/2012/02/computer_securi_2.html

If they are work/Uni machines then talk with your IT department, otherwise if your own then if not well protected they are already at risk…

The hardest thing I found regarding using technology in China was getting online at all..

I gave up in the end and just went off grid for a few days

I’d also be aware of the powers the US immigration have to borrow your IT at the airport and clone it for later viewing…

Also if it’s work take their kit and get your IT department to sort it out then if anything happens it’s not your fault.

I know a few defence related contractors who don’t travel to the US with any IT equipment. They are then issued with a phone/laptop etc for use when they get there by their US office

Thanks all – it sounds as if my colleague was right and I do need a tin hat after all! I travel a huge amount for work and that combo of three work for me – laptop is for more efficient than iPad but I can’t always get near a socket to charge it so the iPad mini works well for taking notes in long conferences/meetings. I’ll want my phone before I get there and on my way home, if only to liaise with the taxi when I get back to Heathrow.

I could do a SuperDuper clone of my MacBook (two of them, just in case) before leaving, then do a clean install of El Capitan and put a minimal amount of documents, presentations back on so I can keep working on things while I’m there. I can then wipe it when I get back to the UK and reinstate the previous configuration. I can leave my phone and iPad in Airplane mode while I’m there. Or is that really not enough and should I buy a cheap netbook (or borrow one from IT) just for this trip, and leave phone and iPad at home?

I’ll have a chat with IT at work, but any other thoughts gratefully received!

I’m an academic with no corporate secrets or anything dodgy on my computer,

Not yet, not yet….

Just to play devil’s advocate –

I can then wipe it when I get back to the UK and reinstate the previous configuration

Probably wouldn’t actually rid you of a proper espionage tool.

don’t pick up/accept any free usb sticks – although that should be standard procedure anywhere in the world.

Thanks, avdave2, sounds like an excellent alibi 🙂

I’m assuming most of the responses on here come from IT security experts who have seen the worst, but even so I’m surprised by the level of concern. I’m well aware of the widespread risks of being online, getting hacked etc, but these risks exist everywhere, and I’m a public health academic, not an arms dealer or Panamanian lawyer, so I’d have thought the risks would be roughly the same as elsewhere. Interesting!

You’d be surprised…

Hotel WiFi and in fact any WiFi in public spaces, airports etc. Avoid if poss. I travel to US and China, take blank phone (old nokia) and a paper pad !

Thanks NZCol – I might just splash out on a Nokia 105…

Great Firewall of China will prevent you doing anything useful on the Internet also.

Used to do some work involving software installed in some retail sites around the world and almost all the problems were the ones in China that were a constant battle trying to get them to connect to our servers through the firewall.

Thanks all. A friend of mine based in Hong Kong has a 4G SIM I can use in China which will apparently let me bypass the great firewall, and I’m going to be able to borrow a laptop and phone for while I’m there – phew!

And there I was thinking I was being all tin-hattish about this 🙂

I’m sure they’d be very happy to quickly examine your unlocked iPhone or iPad. What’s the worse that could happen:

It’s insanely easy to make iPhone malware, but you probably shouldn’t worry about it