Category: Tips

This is my last post on travel tips and lessons I learned from my 17 day trip to India. I had only Google Chrome installed on my smartphone. I had removed the Samsung browser before I left the office to streamline my applications. Here’s why you need more than just Chrome on your smartphone.

In Amsterdam, I could not get on the airport’s free Wi-Fi. Even though I had a VPN app, Chrome would not open the second screen which would allow me to accept the terms and so I could not use Wi-Fi.  Google decided that it simply did not like the security of the connection and so decided for me to lock down my access. Thanks Google. 🙁

To solve the problem, I downloaded Firefox for my smartphone later in my trip. Firefox let’s you be in charge of your own security and so it allowed me to login and accept terms on my return trip through Amsterdam. Then I could be connected to the free airport Wi-Fi and then allow me to choose to turn on my secure VPN app to surf, email, and work securely. You’ve just got to love the flexibility of Firefox!

The lesson learned is don’t depend solely on Google products and Google apps when you travel. Google can lock your access down, choose not to show Wi-Fi login screens, and in general restrict your Google.com, AdWords, and Gmail access. Make sure you have an alternative browser and secure VPN app to get online and stay secure when you travel.

Traveling to India for pleasure and trying to check in with the office and stay secure was a challenge. Here are some lessons I learned from my last trip.

First, make sure you have two browsers installed on your laptop. One for use and one for backup. I found that Google and Google Chrome sometimes did not like an insecure connection and would lock me out of all Google properties.

I downloaded Opera as a browser half way through my trip when I found out that it had an integrated VPN.  NordVPN, a standalone subscription services, which I thought I would use for secure access on my laptop, before my travel was crashed my Wi-Fi repeatedly and the software had to be removed before I left my office for my trip.

Limping along with my smartphone I was able to securely do some work. Using Opera as my browser for my laptop finally allowed me to work securely even over unsecured hotel Wi-Fi and even on networks that Google locked me out of using Chrome. To enable the integrated VPN, open Opera, go to menu on the left, then settings, then privacy and security and then tick to enable VPN.

Before I found Opera’s integrated browser VPN my smartphone was the most secure way for me to be in touch and even do work while in India. But it is hard to really do work on a smartphone.  You can download Opera for your own laptop and next trip by visiting this link to the Opera.com site.