Planning a summer getaway? Travel can be relaxing, but it also creates opportunities for identity thieves. Here are practical, easy-to-follow tips to help protect your personal information while you’re on the road.
- Avoid posting travel plans or real-time updates on social media. Announcing your trip publicly can signal to criminals that your home is unoccupied.
- Have the post office hold your mail or arrange for a trusted neighbor to collect it. Piled-up mail is a clear sign that no one is home and can contain sensitive information.
- Carry only the cards and identification you need for the trip. Leave library cards, membership cards, and other items that display your full name and personal details at home.
- Set a travel alert with your bank and credit card issuers so they know transactions from another location are legitimate. This can reduce the chance of your accounts being frozen or misused.
- Whenever possible, leave your laptop at home. If you must bring one, keep antivirus and anti-spyware software up to date and avoid using unsecured public Wi‑Fi networks for banking or other sensitive activities.
- Use the hotel safe to store passports, extra credit cards, and other important documents when you don’t need them with you.
- Prefer ATMs located at your bank rather than standalone or off-site machines. Bank ATMs are less likely to be tampered with or fitted with skimming devices.
- Protect your smartphone with a strong passcode and enable a remote-locate or “find my phone” feature. These tools can help you recover the device or erase data if it’s lost or stolen.
- When labeling luggage, include only your last name and a phone number or email address that doesn’t reveal your home address. This reduces the amount of personal information available to anyone who sees your tag.
- After you travel, shred or tear up boarding passes and travel documents before disposing of them. Boarding passes and receipts can display full names and other details that identity thieves can exploit.
Follow these straightforward precautions to reduce the risk of identity theft while traveling. Small steps—like limiting the information you carry and securing devices—can make a big difference in protecting your personal and financial data on the go.