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Which email site to use - esp when travelling?

Which email site to use - esp when travelling?

Old Sep 25, 2016, 6:37 pm
  #1  
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Which email site to use - esp when travelling?

1. I use the yahoo web site. Problem is threefold:

a) if I go overseas, then I am often asked to provide a numeric code to prove I am who I say i am - and that code goes to my cell phone (which I do not use outside of North America).

b) every so often, there is a systemic glitch affecting many users of yahoo-unlike the good old days, there is no longer any telephone or chat support.

c) of course I am worried about the 2014 hacking.

2. I do have google email accounts - and accessing gmail is even worse.

a) often, outside of my home computer, my account can not be verified, and I and can not access my account - even if I can enter the numeric codes similar to what is requested for my yahoo account when I have my cell phone (in North America).

b) there is no direct gmail support for issues - just a gmail forum where someone from gmail support may respond, if one is lucky.

3. I do not know anything about hotmail or other email sites.

So what site is best for emails, when travelling - for both customer support and accesing one's email from different computers around the world?
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Old Sep 25, 2016, 6:42 pm
  #2  
 
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Go With Gmail

Setup GMail with 2 Factor Authentication. The 2FA application does run on your phone (or mobile device) but does not require a connection. In other words you can put your phone in Airplane mode and the app still works fine.

I have used Gmail with 2FA as long as it has been available and suggest if your account has any meaningful emails you do so whether traveling or not.
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Old Sep 25, 2016, 6:48 pm
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if you like google but want more support, pay for Google apps for business (you get more storage too), $5-$10/month/user

google has a offline printout version for 2FA
https://support.google.com/accounts/.../1187538?hl=en

don't think I see this option for yahoo?
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Old Sep 25, 2016, 7:00 pm
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Originally Posted by jjlmcgrath
Setup GMail with 2 Factor Authentication. The 2FA application does run on your phone (or mobile device) but does not require a connection. In other words you can put your phone in Airplane mode and the app still works fine.

I have used Gmail with 2FA as long as it has been available and suggest if your account has any meaningful emails you do so whether traveling or not.
Yes, but what if you lose your phone? You'll never get in.

I travel and do not need a code to get into Yahoo or Gmail. This can be turned off I'm sure (since I have never been asked for a code while traveling).
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Old Sep 25, 2016, 7:06 pm
  #5  
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Either Yahoo or Gmail is perfectly fine.

For Yahoo, your only other two-factor authentication method is for them to send a notification to the Yahoo app on your phone. If you have wifi on your phone while overseas then that would work well for you. Yahoo doesn't offer offline code generation like Google does.

If you want to use a Gmail account, you can set up your phone before you leave with the Google Authenticator app, which once set up doesn't need any data connection. You just enter the six digit code it displays when Gmail asks for it.

Gmail also supports login approvals via the Google App on your phone, but that requires an active data connection, like with Yahoo.

I'm not sure why you'd be getting an error that your Google login can't be verified unless you're entering the wrong code. I've been using 2FA with Google for years and never had an issue.

If you enable 2FA on Google, be sure to print out and save in a safe place the list of backup codes or you might never get back into your account.

Originally Posted by TravelinSperry
Yes, but what if you lose your phone? You'll never get in.

I travel and do not need a code to get into Yahoo or Gmail. This can be turned off I'm sure (since I have never been asked for a code while traveling).
It's just a matter of time before a keylogger captures your password. I hope you use separate passwords for each account. You haven't been asked for a code because you have the feature turned off. As I mentioned above, Google will give you a list of backup codes you can use one time each to get in.
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Old Sep 25, 2016, 9:18 pm
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Originally Posted by gfunkdave
It's just a matter of time before a keylogger captures your password. I hope you use separate passwords for each account. You haven't been asked for a code because you have the feature turned off. As I mentioned above, Google will give you a list of backup codes you can use one time each to get in.
Keylogger? baahahahaha. Cmon. The sky isn't falling and no one is logging my keystrokes. You are much more likely to lose or have your phone stolen while traveling. Good luck getting into your account then.
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Old Sep 25, 2016, 11:10 pm
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Originally Posted by TravelinSperry
Keylogger? baahahahaha. Cmon. The sky isn't falling and no one is logging my keystrokes.
Keyloggers on public hotel computers are commonplace. Believing otherwise is foolish. Not all hotels will allow you to email documents to them for printing.

An easy way to protect oneself is to employ a secondary email account to which you'd email any boarding passes or random documents you need to print.
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Old Sep 26, 2016, 2:11 am
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Originally Posted by TravelinSperry
Keylogger? baahahahaha. Cmon. The sky isn't falling and no one is logging my keystrokes. You are much more likely to lose or have your phone stolen while traveling. Good luck getting into your account then.
Originally Posted by gfunkdave
If you enable 2FA on Google, be sure to print out and save in a safe place the list of backup codes or you might never get back into your account.
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Old Sep 26, 2016, 8:19 am
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Originally Posted by Coolers
Keyloggers on public hotel computers are commonplace. Believing otherwise is foolish. Not all hotels will allow you to email documents to them for printing.

An easy way to protect oneself is to employ a secondary email account to which you'd email any boarding passes or random documents you need to print.
Commonplace? Who says? What stats? The media sure does talk it up like it's a thing... but I don't see any articles with any stats.

I have traveled extensively around the world and used hotel computers, computer stores and wifi hotspots with no issues.

That said, I'm all for a secondary hotmail account where you email yourself certain things. I too use one account for personal stuff and another for newsletters, online shopping, etc. I'm not saying to not to be prudent and not saying one shouldn't be careful. But sometimes we take this stuff too far due the media scaring us. I feel quite safe using a business computer in a decent high end hotel.
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Old Sep 26, 2016, 9:54 am
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Originally Posted by TravelinSperry
Commonplace? Who says? What stats? The media sure does talk it up like it's a thing... but I don't see any articles with any stats.

I have traveled extensively around the world and used hotel computers, computer stores and wifi hotspots with no issues.

That said, I'm all for a secondary hotmail account where you email yourself certain things. I too use one account for personal stuff and another for newsletters, online shopping, etc. I'm not saying to not to be prudent and not saying one shouldn't be careful. But sometimes we take this stuff too far due the media scaring us. I feel quite safe using a business computer in a decent high end hotel.
I suppose it's more of a security mindset borne of being in the tech field and understanding at least the basics of IT security, particularly relative risks.

It is notoriously difficult to properly secure a public Windows computer. Hotel IT staff are often not the best, and the business center computers are a low priority. It's not a question of if someone will be compromised who has a habit of using them in an insecure manner, but when.

For me, if I were forced to log on to my Gmail account from a public computer, I'd use the on-screen keyboard to type in my password, which many keyloggers can't log. I'd also probably do it in the browser's incognito mode so it deletes all the login cookies and session just in case the Log Off button doesn't (though I think Gmail's implementation is probably fine).

In any case, good security practices are about managing risk. You don't seem to ascribe much risk to your current practices, but I do.
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Old Sep 26, 2016, 10:42 am
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Originally Posted by gfunkdave
I suppose it's more of a security mindset

It is notoriously difficult to properly secure a public Windows computer.

I'd also probably do it in the browser's incognito mode
Exactly.....^^^
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Old Sep 26, 2016, 11:49 am
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I'd use the on-screen keyboard to type in my password,

How do you get that to pop up ?

Thanks
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Old Sep 26, 2016, 1:33 pm
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Originally Posted by LAXlocal
I'd use the on-screen keyboard to type in my password,

How do you get that to pop up ?

Thanks
Open the Start Menu and search for "Keyboard". It's also under Accessories -> Ease of Access in the Start Menu.

I typed this sentence on the on screen keyboard !
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Old Sep 26, 2016, 3:25 pm
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Keyloggers are not necessary. If I had a dollar for every time I go to delete whatever I am working on on a hotel computer and find all sorts of confidential stuff that previous people have simply left on the computer, including once by total coincidence by a competor the month before.

In all seriousness though, I have always found Yahoo to be the most dependable on the road, the 2014 hack does not bother me for two reasons:

1) I distinctly remember in early/mid 2015 having to change my password(s) several times, which I did.

2) Because of the vast number of hacked material, someone would sepcifically have to be going for you to do anything of real harm, and I mean at a level whereby they would have been hacking you anyway if you were that important.
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Old Sep 26, 2016, 4:51 pm
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Originally Posted by TravelinSperry
Keylogger? baahahahaha. Cmon. The sky isn't falling and no one is logging my keystrokes. You are much more likely to lose or have your phone stolen while traveling. Good luck getting into your account then.
Losing your phone is probably more common than being the victim of a keylogger. The latter event is vastly more serious, though. Your phone is locked*, so while it could be quite inconvenient to lose it, the loss won't be accompanied by the loss of all your saved emails and the stripping of your bank and retirement accounts. These are realistic possible consequences of using a computer with a keylogger installed.

James Fallows wrote a detailed article about the massive headache he and his wife endured when her Gmail account was hacked, almost certainly due to careless use of a public computer. It's just one story, but the possible consequences are so severe that you should never consider a public computer safe. I used a hotel's business center computer the other day and was impressed both by the quantity of other people's information I found in its browser and by its complete lack of security.


*It is, isn't it?
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