SELFIES are becoming an increasingly popular target for hackers to steal loyalty points and personal data from travellers, a new report from NordVPN shows.
The study suggested the rise in airport selfies posted online showing boarding passes and passports has attracted more attention from cyber criminals, who are using barcodes and personal details to steal points and impersonate travellers.
With that one celebratory photo, NordVPN contends fraudsters can use the info to get into a passenger’s airline account, steal their mileage points, or change details for upcoming flights, as well as pose as airline staff to steal credit card numbers, and steal the identities of travellers by using the photo as a way to track down more details through social media accounts.
“Even if only the barcode of your flight ticket is visible in the picture, hackers can scan it and find out such information as a traveller’s full name, reservation number, passenger name record, and sometimes even contact information,” the report stated.
“After collecting this huge amount of data about their victim, criminals can proceed to sell this data on the dark web or even worse, steal the victim’s identity, enabling the hacker to commit fraud like opening credit card accounts or making unauthorised purchases.”
To mitigate the chance of being a victim, NordVPN suggests travellers only post their holiday photos after trips, avoid posting pics on airport wi-fi networks, & move social accounts to private.
PUBLISHED ON: https://www.traveldaily.com.au
