Picture this: You’re traveling, either on vacation or for business. Your phone is stolen or becomes lost. And now you’re locked out of your password manager and email accounts.
One of my bosses recently lived through this nightmare while abroad. A pickpocket made off with his iPhone during the trip and when he tried setting up a new one to replace it, he found he couldn’t log in to his password manager or email account.
Why? His original iPhone held his two-factor authentication codes for the password manager. And his email password was locked up inside the password manager. He had to finish his trip without access to his normal accounts, or the ability to lock down the stolen phone.
Obviously, most vacations don’t go this way—and you can ensure they don’t with a few steps.
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Know your email password
Miguel Á. Padriñán / Pexels
I wrote about this last year, and it created a small stir among readers. But I firmly believe that you should always memorize the passwords to at least two accounts: your password manager and your primary email address.
If you get locked out of one, you’ll still have access to the other. Or at least a better shot at having access to the other.
At minimum, if you don’t want to remember your email password, set up a passkey. Put this passkey on a hardware key (e.g., YubiKey or Google Titan Security Key) that you bring with you on your trip. These have keychain holes, so you can pin one to your clothes or wear it on a chain if you prefer not to leave it in your luggage.
(I like passkeys because the data can’t be stolen the way a password can, so you can use it on a public computer with less worry than if typing in a password.)
Or, as my boss is considering, write the password down on a slip of paper and put it in your shoe. (Don’t label what it’s for.) Shred it when you’re done with your trip.
Have a backup method of 2FA on you
YubiKey
If you’re smart, you set up two-factor authentication for your password manager and your email account. That means if you lose your normal method of 2FA (likely your phone), you’ll need a backup method available to you.
Same as with your email password, you can go one of two pretty easy routes. Scrawling a couple of backup 2FA codes (which you should have saved after first setting up 2FA) on a slip of paper is one option. (Again, you can put this in your shoe—I recommend slipping it between the insole and the bottom of the shoe interior, if possible. Gets less humid that way.)
Or you can use a YubiKey or Google Titan Security Key. If you put a passkey on it, you won’t even need to worry about entering 2FA information. But you can still use it as a 2FA method instead, if you prefer.
Bring a backup phone
Stanley Ng
My boss mentioned he normally brings a backup phone with him on trips, but just so happened to skip it this time. (Oof.) If you have a spare phone or use a tablet, this is an easy way to ensure seamless uptime if your main phone gets lost or stolen.
You will need to set aside some time before the trip setting up the phone with your password manager and email account info, along with any other necessary apps for the trip. (Or at minimum, verifying everything on the phone is still logged in and up to date.)
But once that’s done, you’ll just have to turn on the phone to be up and running again. And you should be able to immediately revoke access to your accounts for the lost/stolen phone.