Listen to this post: How to protect your laptop and phone at conferences and events (without losing your mind)
You’re juggling a coffee, your badge is swinging, and your phone’s out because the check-in desk wants a quick QR scan. Behind you, a queue forms. Someone bumps your shoulder, you smile, you shuffle forward. In that small moment, it’s easy to misplace the one thing you can’t replace mid-event: your laptop or phone.
At conferences and events, there are two main risks. Theft, where someone takes the device. And data theft, where someone gets into it (or tricks you into handing over access). The good news is you don’t need a complex set-up to stay safe. You need a simple plan you can follow before, during, and after the event.
Pack and set up your devices before you leave, so you are not scrambling on-site
Most conference mistakes happen when you’re rushed. The night before, people are printing tickets, charging everything, and cramming a laptop into a tote that’s already full. Make your prep boring and repeatable, like tying your shoes.
Start with a quick pre-event “travel hardening” routine. The aim is to reduce what you carry, tighten access, and make it easier to recover your kit if it disappears. If you want a broader, work-focused checklist that’s written for professional travel, see conference and travel security best practice. Then tailor it to your own reality.
A simple, readable pack-and-set-up checklist:
- Charge everything, then pack the charger where you can reach it quickly (you’re less likely to borrow unknown cables or plug into random ports).
- Write down your device serial numbers and take a photo of them (useful for police reports and insurance).
- Put one discreet marker on each device (a tiny sticker under the case, or an engraving) so it’s provably yours.
- Carry your laptop in a plain bag, not an obvious “laptop sleeve with a logo” that advertises value.
- Decide what you’ll do if it goes missing, before you’re stressed and tired.
The rest is about tightening the basics that stop most attacks.
Lock down access in minutes: updates, screen lock, and multi-factor sign-ins
Updates first. If your phone or laptop is a few months behind, you’re walking into a crowded venue with known holes. Update the operating system and key apps, then turn on auto-updates. Do it at home on trusted Wi-Fi, not in a hotel room the night before.
Next, set a screen lock that’s actually strong. Avoid dates, postcodes, or anything a colleague could guess after chatting to you at the bar. Use a longer PIN or passcode, plus fingerprint or face unlock for convenience.
A passcode tip that’s easy to remember: pick three random words you can picture, then add two numbers. For example, “KettleRiverPaper27”. It’s longer than a four-digit PIN, but still memorable because your brain can see it.
Then enable multi-factor authentication (MFA) on your key accounts. Start with email, cloud storage, and anything linked to payments. Email matters because it’s the master key for password resets. If someone gets your email, they can often reset everything else while you’re still hunting for your missing phone.
If you’re managing devices for work, build these habits into a routine, not a one-off. The UK’s National Cyber Security Centre has practical guidance for organisations in its Business Security Hub, and it’s readable even if you’re a team of one.
Prepare for the worst case: backups, tracking, and a clean travel set-up
Assume the worst, then make it survivable.
Back up before you travel. A cloud backup is good, but an offline copy is better if you can manage it (an encrypted external drive at home, for example). The aim is simple: if the laptop vanishes, you still have your work and photos.
Turn on tracking and remote actions. On Apple devices, enable Find My. On Android, use Find My Device. On many laptops, you can enable built-in tracking features and remote wipe. Set this up in advance, and test that you can log in from another device.
Reduce what you carry, digitally as well as physically:
- Remove files you won’t need for the event.
- Sign out of accounts you don’t plan to use (especially banking and admin tools).
- Consider a separate user profile for conferences, with fewer saved logins and less access to sensitive folders.
Add contact details to the lock screen, but keep it safe. An email address is enough. Don’t put your home address or anything that helps someone match you to a personal identity.
A small extra: add a tracker tag to your bag. It won’t stop theft, but it can help you find a misplaced backpack in a venue, or give you a last known location if it leaves the building.
On the floor, stop theft with simple body habits and smarter storage
A conference is a perfect place to steal. People are distracted, tables are crowded, and everyone assumes “someone would notice”. Theft often looks boring, like a person calmly picking up a laptop that’s been left beside a chair.
Your goal is to remove easy chances.
A good rule: if your device isn’t in your hands, it should be locked away. Not “near you”, not “under the chair”, not “on the table while you nip to grab a water”.
Physical security advice tends to sound obvious, but it’s worth following because it works. Government security agencies focus on these basics for a reason, see CISA guidance on physical security for portable devices.
Make it hard to grab: how to sit, stand, and queue with your laptop and phone
In keynote rooms, choose positions that reduce drive-by grabs. If you’re working, keep the laptop on your lap or on the table with one hand near it. When you stop, close it and put it away. Open laptops left on tables are the easiest target because a thief doesn’t need to unzip anything.
In expo halls and networking clusters, treat your phone like cash:
- Keep it in a front pocket or a zipped pocket.
- Don’t set it down on a stand “just for a second” while you shake hands.
- If you need both hands for a demo, put the phone away first, then focus.
Queues are where people lose devices. Badge pick-up, coffee lines, cloakrooms, photo ops, shuttle buses. The line moves, you’re holding items, you’re checking emails. That’s when phones fall into coat pockets that don’t zip, or laptops end up on the floor by your feet.
Make a default stance: bag strap across your body, bag in front in dense crowds. If you sit, loop a strap around a chair leg (not as a guarantee, but as friction). If you’re using a backpack, keep one strap on rather than hanging it on the back of the chair.
If you’re working in a co-working corner or session room and you must step away, use a cable lock. It buys you time and makes your kit a less attractive option than the unlocked device two seats away. It’s the same logic behind advice like preventing laptop theft on campus: thieves go for speed and ease.
One more rule that’s awkward but useful: don’t let strangers “quickly borrow” your phone or laptop. Even if they don’t steal it, they can photograph info, connect to accounts, or install something you won’t notice until later.
Hotel and after-hours rules: your room is not always secure
A hotel room feels private, but staff and maintenance can enter, and doors don’t always latch the way you think. If there’s a safe, use it for your spare phone, passport, and small valuables. If the safe is tiny or looks flimsy, keep your devices with you instead of leaving them out.
Avoid leaving gear in places that feel harmless: conference coat checks, unattended charging tables, cars, or the corner of a bar while you “keep an eye on it”. After-hours events are noisy and social. That’s when laptops are left under tables and forgotten.
When you sleep, don’t leave devices by the door or on a desk visible from the hallway. Put them out of sight, and keep your bag somewhere you’d notice movement. It’s not about fear, it’s about removing temptation.
Finally, mark your devices discreetly. A tiny engraving or an ID sticker under a case can help prove ownership if something turns up later.
Protect your data in places built for sharing: Wi-Fi, QR codes, and charging points
Conferences are made for connection. That’s the problem.
Shared Wi-Fi, shared chargers, shared QR codes, shared screens. Convenience can turn into a trap when you’re tired and trying to do five things at once. The aim here isn’t to become paranoid, it’s to keep your private actions private.
Safer connections: skip risky Wi-Fi habits and spot fake hotspots
If you can, use your phone hotspot with a password. It’s often more secure than open event Wi-Fi, and it reduces the chance of someone snooping on traffic on the same network.
If you must use event Wi-Fi, avoid sensitive logins on it, especially banking, password manager changes, and admin dashboards. If you do log in, make sure you’re using HTTPS sites and consider a VPN. A VPN is just an extra tunnel that helps stop other people on the same Wi-Fi from seeing what you’re doing.
Two habits that reduce risk fast:
- Turn off auto-join for Wi-Fi networks.
- Forget the conference network after the event, so your phone doesn’t reconnect next time you walk past the venue.
Fake hotspots are common because they’re easy to set up. Someone names a network “Conference Guest” or “Free Expo WiFi” and waits. Confirm the official network name (SSID) from staff or signage, not from a stranger who “knows the code”.
Don’t get tricked by convenience: public USB charging, Bluetooth, and QR traps
Charging is where people drop their guard. Public USB ports can carry data, not just power. That means a malicious port or cable could try to access your device. It’s a simple idea with a nasty outcome.
Safer options:
- Use your own plug and cable, plugged into a wall socket.
- Carry a small power bank.
- Use a charge-only cable (or a USB data blocker) if you rely on public charging.
Also, switch off Bluetooth and Wi-Fi when you’re not using them. It reduces the ways other devices can try to connect, and it stops your phone from constantly searching.
QR codes are another quiet risk. At events, they’re everywhere: schedules, menus, lead capture, giveaways. Treat them like links you can’t read.
Scan only QR codes from official signs, inside the app you trust (like the venue app or your camera). Watch for weird prompts, especially anything that asks you to install an app from outside the official app stores, or to log in to an account “to see the agenda”. Be wary of look-alike messages that claim you need to “re-confirm your ticket” or “pay to secure your seat”.
If you want a short, plain-language reminder of these travel risks, UCSF’s travel safety guidance for devices covers the key behaviours without drama.
If something goes missing, act fast with a simple recovery script
Panic wastes time. A missing device isn’t just about the cost of hardware, it’s the open doors: email, work files, saved logins, payment apps, and two-factor codes.
This is the script to follow so you don’t have to think.
First 10 minutes: locate, lock, and report in the right order
- Locate it: Use Find My (Apple) or Find My Device (Android). Play a sound if it’s nearby. Check under chairs, behind booths, and on ledges first.
- Lock it: Put it into Lost Mode, or lock it remotely. Add a message with a contact email.
- Change passwords: Start with your email password, then your password manager, then any work accounts. Email first, because it controls resets.
- Report quickly: Tell event security straight away. Then contact venue lost and found. If it looks like theft, report to the police.
While it’s fresh, note the time and place, and what was nearby (a specific stand, a coffee point, a camera above a corridor). Small details help security teams actually check footage.
If you need a refresher on why fast physical action matters, CISA’s portable device physical security advice aligns with the same principle: speed beats regret.
Same day clean-up: protect accounts, payment cards, and work data
Later that day, do the clean-up properly.
Check recent logins for your main accounts and revoke active sessions wherever you can (Google, Microsoft, Apple, social platforms). If you think the device won’t come back, remote wipe it. Do this only after you’ve attempted tracking and secured your accounts, and only if you’re confident your data is backed up.
If wallet apps were accessible, freeze or replace payment cards. If the device is used for work, tell IT immediately, even if it feels embarrassing. It’s better to be the person who flagged it early than the person who waited until Monday.
Finally, gather what you’ll need for claims: receipts, serial numbers, photos, and the police reference number if you have one. Articles like settings to change before your laptop is stolen can be a useful prompt after the fact, but the best time to do those steps is still before you travel.
Conclusion
Conferences are loud, busy, and full of small distractions. That’s why device protection works best when it’s simple: prep your laptop and phone before you leave, keep them physically close on the floor, avoid risky Wi-Fi and charging habits, and act fast if something goes missing.
If you only do three things today, make them these: switch on tracking, enable MFA on your email, and pack a power bank so you’re not tempted by random USB ports. You’ll still enjoy the event, you’ll still network, and you’ll stop treating your devices like they’re invincible just because they’re expensive.
