High Risk Country Guidance
High Risk Country Guidance
The University compiles a list of High Risk Countries from a number of sources, including the University of Colorado Systems Risk Management, the Department of State, the Department of Treasury, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The FBI has stated that US travelers are priority targets for cyber-attack and monitoring/surveillance, particularly if they are known to be engaged in classified or proprietary research in a STEM field (science, technology, engineering or mathematics).
Electronic devices and the information on these devices may be at risk of both physical tampering and cyber-attacks. In rare circumstances, personal devices and luggage may be subject to involuntary official government review (such as Customs officers temporarily seizing devices). In other countries, you may need to prepare for limited access to specific websites or applications (apps) such as Canvas, Zoom, Teams, YouTube, Google, Facebook or Twitter due to international sanctions or unreliable connectivity.
High-Risk Countries
The University currently considers the following countries as "high-risk":
Afghanistan | Chad | Guinea | Liberia | Russia** | Venezuela |
Algeria | China** | Guinea-Bissau | Libya | Sao Tome and Principe | Yemen |
Belarus** | Cuba* | Haiti | Mali Niger | Sierra Leone | Zimbabwe |
Burkina Faso | Cyprus | Hong Kong (China SAR) | Niger | Somalia | |
Burma/Myanmar* | Democratic Republic of Congo | Iran* | Nigeria (Borno, Yobe, Bauchi, Gombe, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Zamfara, and northern Adamawa states only) | South Sudan and Sudan | |
Burundi | Egypt | Iraq | North Korea* | Syria/Syrian Arab Republic* | |
Cambodia | Ethiopia (Tigray region only) | Israel | Pakistan | Taiwan | |
Central African Republic | Eritrea | Lebanon | Palestinian Territories/West Bank and Gaza | Ukraine/Crimea, Donbas and the Luhansk People's Republic region(s) Regions* | Updated 10/24/2023 |
*Countries marked with an asterisk are subject to broad sanctions and embargoes from the Department of Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC). Travel to these countries will likely require prior authorization from the United States Government.