Over seven million people in the U.S. last year alone were victims of identity theft resulting in approximately fifty billion dollars of fraudulent credit card, bank, and other financial charges. A significant number of these victims were business travelers, people on their holidays, and tourists. Here is some valuable information that may save you lots of grief when you travel.
It’s very easy when people travel on their vacation to let their guard down. They have a lot of things on their minds trying to remember everything they need to take care of before they go and what they need to take with them on vacation. Not only that, they want to unwind, relax, and have fun. Isn’t that what vacations should be all about? When they travel they don’t want to have to be on guard all time and constantly concerned about getting ripped off every minute of their holidays.
There are three major sources of identity theft that you need to be aware of when you travel. They are your wallet, laptop or your PDA, and internet cafes.
Research shows that most identity thefts happen when people’s wallets are stolen, usually by professional pick pockets. Whether you travel on business or vacation you must guard your wallet at all times because you are at more risk than in familiar surroundings. Never carry your wallet in your back pocket – it’s not called the “sucker pocket” for nothing. It’s best to put your wallet in a fanny pack. A number of travelers prefer a fanny pack with a Velcro closure instead of a zippered one because you can hear it being opened. The usual places you will find pickpockets are in crowded areas such as airports, train and bus stations, hotel lobbies, restaurants, and sporting events.
Usually most people carry more personal information in their wallets then they need. The best thing to do before you travel is to go through your wallet and take out any personal information items that you don’t need when traveling such as checks, check books, credit card receipts, any bills, and memberships cards such as library cards. You also don’t need to take your social security card as you probably have that number memorized by heart.
Debit cards certainly are a convenient way to take small amounts of cash out of ATM’s when traveling, but are also a great way for thieves to clean out your bank account if they get a hold of them. One way you can reduce this risk is to open up a separate bank account before you go and only put as much day-to-day cash in it as you think you may need for your holidays. Take only that bank debit card with you.
Credit cards, because they are protected by Federal law are a much better choice to take with you as you are generally covered for any fraudulent charges incurred. And if you are over-charged or find an error on any of your credit card transactions when traveling, it’s easier to get the charges corrected or reversed from the credit card companies. It is advisable to take two credit cards in case one is compromised, or lost. You can obtain smaller, limited amount prepaid cash cards from American Express, Visa, and MasterCard that are perfect for daily use. You can get cash cards in any denomination. It is probably best to get a couple of cards with low limits of five hundred dollars or less each. If they are stolen or lost, the credit card companies will replace the funds. Leave your major cards and passport in the hotel’s safe or your room safe along with any other personal information that you don’t need from day to day.
Before you travel be sure and check that your credit cards won’t expire while you’re on vacation. And be sure to call your credit card issuers to let them know when and where you plan to holiday so they don’t have a conniption fit and cancel your card when they see a credit charge showing up from some place like Timbuktu. Make a note of these phone numbers and take them with you when on vacation.
Another major source of identity theft starts with a stolen laptop. Well over six hundred thousand laptops are lost or pilfered in the U.S. alone, frequently from inattentive travelers in airports, restaurants, and hotel lobbies.
Before you travel, backup your laptop and put the backup disc in a safe place at home or in a safety deposit box at your bank in case your laptop is lost or stolen. Place a small strip of colored tape on the top and bottom of your laptop and laptop case as most laptops and their cases look similar in appearance. Write your name, destination address, and contact information at your destination on a piece of paper and tape it to your laptop just in case it’s lost at the airport. You should not use your home address on this piece of paper. It is better to use your work or business address and telephone number. So many laptops left behind unintentionally. The lost and found offices at airports don’t have time to try and gain access to all the laptops which are more than likely password protected anyway.
The third major source of identity theft that can happen is at any public computer or internet cafe. Your personal information could be at risk even if you are just sending or accessing e-mails. A key stroke logger could be installed which secretly keeps a record of all passwords, user names, and personal information that is entered on the computer. Even if public computers are not compromised they will still store the information you input in the temporary internet files and history. Never access any bank or credit card account, or pay bills from these computers. Computers located in the business centers of hotels and on cruise ships are generally safer to use than other public computers.
The bottom line is to always be vigilant when you are traveling. Have a safe and fabulous vacation!
