Guest blog by: Live and Invest Overseas
Losing a passport is most travelers’ worst nightmare, but did you know that losing your boarding pass and/or luggage tags could be just as problematic?
What can boarding passes and luggage tags tell hackers?
Boarding passes and luggage tags have barcodes that contain sensitive personal information—your name, contact details, flight information, booking reference numbers, airline account numbers, and more. Those barcodes can be easily scanned and your personal information downloaded by pretty much anyone using simple software that is widely available.
Coming across a stray boarding pass or luggage tag is the ideal situation for a cyberhacker. With access to your frequent flyer number, for instance, the hacker can book a trip on your account. They could call you and convincingly impersonate a representative of the airline you fly with, quoting your booking reference or frequent flyer account number back to you for verification.
Worse still, a lost boarding pass or luggage tag can compromise your overall digital footprint. A hacker can use the information they glean from your boarding pass to figure out your passwords and break into other accounts. They can sell your information on the dark web, making it easy for others to steal your identity, open a credit card in your name, or go on a shopping spree on your tab.
What can travelers do to stay safe?
First, if you have a printed boarding pass or luggage tag, make sure to keep a close eye on it. Don’t just shove it into the back of the seat in front of you after you sit down for your flight. Take as much care of it as you do your passport. Bring it home with you and shred it or tear it into pieces before you dispose of it. The same goes for your luggage tags. Opt for a digital boarding pass wherever possible, and then pay close attention to whatever device you have it stored on.
Lastly, be very careful about what you share online. So many people have unwittingly given away their personal information by sharing pre-trip selfies with their boarding passes on social media. This makes things easy for cyberhackers, because, even in photos, the barcode on your boarding pass can be scanned. Former Prime Minister of Australia, Tony Abbott, made this blunder back in 2020 when he shared a snap of his Qantas boarding pass on Instagram. He was lucky: The hacker used the opportunity to educate Abbott about the potential security breach. It only took him 45 minutes to uncover Abbott’s personal details.
The moral of the story is to no longer treat your boarding pass or luggage tags as throw-away items. In a world where personal data is increasingly valuable, it pays to consider the security risks of handling these data-rich documents carefully.
David Popowich and Faisal Karmali are Investment Advisors with CIBC Wood Gundy in Calgary. The views of David Popowich, Faisal Karmali, and guest author do not necessarily reflect those of CIBC World Markets Inc. This information, including any opinion, is based on various sources believed to be reliable, but its accuracy cannot be guaranteed and is subject to change. CIBC Private Wealth consists of services provided by CIBC and certain of its subsidiaries, including CIBC Wood Gundy, a division of CIBC World Markets Inc. The CIBC logo and “CIBC Private Wealth” are trademarks of CIBC, used under license. “Wood Gundy” is a registered trademark of CIBC World Markets Inc.
