Safety tips for the modern traveler

American travelers have a few easily accessible resources for learning about unfamiliar destinations. The first is the Central Intelligence Agency's World Factbook. This public CIA database serves as a crash course in the essential information of the world's countries, from geography and ethnic diversity to summaries of their various sociopolitical issues and historical conflicts.

You may find the the Department of State's website even more helpful - specifically its section on travel warnings and alerts. Here, you'll find detailed, up-to-date explanations of a given country's safety issues, stemming from crime, civil unrest, natural disasters and other causes. Alerts pertain to hazards that are expected to pass, such as a flood season or a surge in political discontent that isn't likely to affect areas frequented by tourists. Warnings are issued in more serious circumstances, like countries affected by war, sectarian clashes, frequent terrorist incidents or violence tied to the drug trade, and the State Department generally advises against visiting those countries, full stop.

It's simple enough to just avoid a country if you're choosing a vacation spot, but on business trips you have no choice. This in no way means you're in danger by default, though - you just have to take advantage of all available safety resources.

Perhaps chief among these is registering yourself in the State Department's Smart Traveler Enrollment Program. Doing so informs the American embassy offices in a given country that you're there and allows them to locate you. Embassy officials will get all necessary authorities involved should anything happen. Frankly, enrolling in STEP is a good idea for any U.S. citizen abroad, even when you're on vacation in a nation widely known as a safe place to visit. 

Additionally, USA Today noted that taking a picture of your passport and saving it to your mobile device is a wise fail-safe if you lose it or store it in the hotel safe while you're out and about.