Protecting Your Identity During Summer Travel

While identity theft at any time is a terrible experience, identity theft while traveling can be especially upsetting—and that’s when you could face higher risks. Travel fraud prevention involves using the right security tools to protect your information, your identity, and your accounts while watching out for numerous risks along the way.

Be Careful What You Post Online

Posting your travel plans and pictures on social media is like putting a billboard on your front lawn that says: “nobody’s home!” Criminals look for this kind of information because it could give them a chance to break into your home while you’re away, or to try and steal your identity or financial information such as bank accounts and credit cards. Such a theft can be difficult to deal with while you’re at home but just imagine finding out that your bank account was hacked or your credit card was scammed while you’re away. If you do post on social media, consider changing your settings to “private” so that only people you know and trust will see your posts. You could also wait until you get home to post things online or just send any pictures or notices to friends and family directly through email, a messaging app, or text.

Protect Your Mail

If you receive your mail through a slot in your front door, you might be okay with letting it collect there. If you have a mailbox near the curb, a full mailbox would be a tempting target for thieves who want to steal your identity or your things. Have your mail held at your local post office while you’re away, or have a trusted neighbor collect your mail.

Notify the Right People When You’re Traveling

Most people tell their friends and family when they’ll be traveling. You might also tell a trusted neighbor so they can keep an eye on your place and could reach you in case of an emergency. You should also tell your bank and credit card company, especially if you’ll be traveling out of the country. If you rarely travel outside the Shenandoah Valley and your bank or credit card sees activity in a far-off location, it could trigger a fraud alert, and your cards could be frozen. Your bank can also watch out for fraud while you’re traveling. For example, if you’re spending a week in France and a scammer uses your information to rack up charges in other countries, your bank or credit card company could flag these transactions because they don’t fit your itinerary.

Think about Which Cards You’ll Take with You

Depending on how many debit or credit cards you have, you might not need all of them on your trip. Consider decluttering your wallet or purse beforehand and only take the cards you’ll actually need.

Use Transaction Limits and Alerts

Setting up transaction limits and alerts with your bank and credit card company can help you keep track of your spending and alert you for usually large transactions.

Use Secure Passwords and Consider a Password Manager

Using passwords that are easy to remember, such as something to do with your pet’s name or the street you live on, would be too easy for someone to hack into. Of course, several complicated passwords can be difficult to remember. Having them written down somewhere, kept in a wallet or purse, could be easy for you to lose or for someone to steal. A password manager could solve all of these problems. It can generate complicated passwords for you and store them in a vault. With a web browser extension, your password manager can automatically enter these passwords when you have to log on to an account. This way, you would have just one password to remember, and of course it should be as complicated as possible but also something you would remember.

Set up Multifactor Authentication

Multifactor authentication is an extra layer of security for your passwords and accounts. This way, even if someone hacked your passwords, they still couldn’t access your accounts unless you approve it through an app on your phone. A password manager that includes a multifactor authentication app gives you two solid layers of digital security.

Protect Your Passport and Other Documents

A U.S. passport is a highly valuable document to criminals that they could use to create forgeries or steal your identity. Keep your passport with you as much as possible and in a secure pocket of your clothes, your purse, or luggage (your back pocket or the outside pocket of a purse or backpack is too easy for someone to steal from). You might also make a copy of your passport and conceal it somewhere such as your wallet or luggage, just in case your passport is lost or stolen and you have to get a new one.

Stay Safe When Using Wi-Fi

With public Wi-Fi, there’s no guarantee that it’s as secure as your home Internet. Even if you’re staying at a reputable hotel or using the Wi-Fi at a trusted Internet café, scammers can still intercept the Wi-Fi signal to steal your personal information, such as email passwords or bank login credentials. Try to avoid using public Wi-Fi for anything that could be sensitive, such as checking your bank account. To protect your identity on vacation, you might use a virtual private network (VPN), which uses computer code to create a kind of digital “tunnel” that makes it difficult for someone to steal your personal data through Wi-Fi. It also helps protect your devices from malware or spyware being secretly installed on your devices. Secure banking while traveling means only doing so when you’re highly confident that it’s safe or otherwise avoiding logging on to your banking portal while away from home unless it’s absolutely necessary.

Be Cautious about QR Codes

QR codes are practically everywhere these days, and their convenience is obvious. You can use them to quickly open a website, view a restaurant menu, log onto an account, or make a payment. Unfortunately, they can also be used by scammers to commit a new kind of scam known as quishing.

One common approach is for scammers to place their own QR code sticker over a legitimate one, such as a restaurant menu or a parking meter, and trick people into visiting a fraudulent website, installing malware on their phone, or sending money to the scammers. Quishing attempts can also happen when scammers send a text or email to someone and claim there’s a problem with the victim’s account or an undeliverable package.

To protect yourself from QR code scams, take a close look at a QR code to see if it’s really a sticker that was placed over a legitimate sign, menu, or poster. If a QR code looks legit and you tap on it, take a close look at the web address that pops up on your phone to make sure it’s for real. Look for spelling errors and unusual domain names. Above all else, don’t access any unsolicited QR codes unless you’ve verified them through other means. If you’re unsure about a QR code, try doing an Internet search for a company’s website instead of following the QR code. If a QR code claims to be from your bank or credit card company, call the company directly from their actual phone number (not the number that might be included with the QR code).

Look over Your Shoulder

One of the most common summer travel safety tips is to look over your shoulder, but not just when you’re in unfamiliar areas. If you’re entering a PIN at an ATM or accessing an account on your phone or a laptop, make sure there isn’t a second set of eyes peering over your shoulder to try and steal your information. If you’re withdrawing cash, make sure you do so in a secure and well-lit location, such as inside a bank. These will likely be more protected from prying eyes, thieves, and card-reading devices that could steal your information.

Use Antivirus Software and Keep Your Devices Updated

It makes sense to look after your physical health when planning for a trip, such as making sure you have refills of any prescriptions you may need or checking your vaccination status. You’ll need to protect your phone and any other devices as well. Antivirus and anti-malware software can help you keep your devices safe while at home and when traveling, and there are many free versions available. Also make sure that any devices you take with you have their operating systems and software kept up-to-date.

Work with Us to Keep Your Accounts Secure

It makes sense to do an account review and check your security settings and transaction alerts before traveling. You might set up or change your mobile banking and account alerts based on your travel plans. Make sure you have our contact information with you and notify us immediately if your debit card is lost or stolen, or you see signs of suspicious activity. If you need to disable an F&M Bank debit or credit card, call our customer service at (540) 896-8941, or disable it through online banking or our mobile app.