How to protect yourself from Online Travel Scams

Thanks to the internet, these days it is so easy to just about anything, such as booking travel reservations! However, every year the amount of fake travel booking websites grows because it is so easy for cybercriminals to scam consumers.

According to recent surveys, about 15 million online reservations are made every year on fake travel websites! That means that these websites trick people into thinking they are booking their reservation, but instead they are allowing cybercriminals to steal their private data such as their money and credit card information.

Here’s how to avoid online travel scams…

1. When making a booking always go directly to the company’s official website, whether it is for a hotel, airline, airport shuttle service (www.asct.co.za), etc. if you’re not sure if it’s the real website or not, give them a call to verify their website.

2. If you do need to use a third=party website, make sure it is a trusted and well-known brand.

3. Always try to get recommendations for trusted travel companies or websites from your friends and family.

4. When you do your online bookings, always use a credit card instead of a debit card just in case the website isn’t legitimate, at least your credit card will probably have fraud protection.

5. After you’ve made a reservation, call the company afterward to confirm. If there is no record of your reservation at least you will know you’ve been scammed sooner rather than later. From there you can alert your bank and report the fraud.