Travel News: Prevent Identity Theft, Progress for Travelers With Disabilities, and NYC’s New MTA App
About to leave for your summer vacation? We’ve got some urgent advice about how to protect yourself from identity theft. Traveling with a disability? We’re happy to report that the online booking industry is catching up to your needs. Have you ever cursed NYC’s public transportation system? (We live here, and we sure have.) There’s an app for that. Enjoy this week’s empowering travel news.
PREVENT IDENTITY THEFT
We received some important - and easy - tips for preventing identity theft while you’re on vacation, from the experts at Experian. As we rely more and more on technology to inspire, book, and navigate our travels, the risk of having our bank accounts and other valuable data hacked rises. Here, eight ways to make sure it doesn’t happen to you:
- Tell your bank and/or credit card companies when and where you’ll be traveling, so they know you’ll be using your card elsewhere and they’ll flag any suspicious account activity.
- Hold your mail so important documentation doesn’t sit around in your mailbox while you’re away.
- Clean out your wallet to ensure you’ve got the crucial cards and ID, and leave extra cards at home. And never carry your Social Security card or bank PIN in your wallet.
- Avoid public computers as much as possible. When you do need to use one (to, say, print out a boarding pass or discounted entry ticket to a museum or theme park), use a privacy browser mode that does not save any important information (such as passwords and cookies).
- Keep an eye on your valuables. Sure, this seems obvious, but it means don’t leave your passport in your back pocket, don’t get so enthralled by, say, the view of the Grand Canyon that you forget that your purse is unzipped and inviting impromptu thievery.
- Use indoor ATMs. It’s tempting to nab the nearest public ATM in a seeming “emergency” such as needing cash to buy gelato, but opt for those inside hotels and bank lobbies instead, where the risk of a stolen PIN is much lower.
- Check your bank statements to make sure there are no fraudulent purchases.
- Consider adding a virtual private network (VPN) on your smartphone and laptop, which automatically encrypts website you visit or app you use, making it much more difficult for hackers to steal your information.
PROGRESS FOR TRAVELERS WITH DISABILITIES
Whether you’re planning a multigenerational family reunion or simply facing your own physical challenges on the road, all travelers have reason to be thankful about improved online booking tools for those traveling with disabilities. As Sean O’Neill reports on Skift, the past year has seen a significant effort to assist travelers with disabilities when they book a trip online. Airbnb has acquired and is currently integrating Accomable, a British startup specializing in accessible lodging. Expedia actively assesses the accessibility of its booking site to those with visual, hearing, and mobility issues. Booking.com has offered an “accelerator” program for startups whose goal is to make travel more accessible. Some of the best progress has been made by smaller booking sites, such as Handiscover (handdiscover.com), which catalogs accessible properties around the world and has certified more than 28,000 hotel listings, many of which can be booked on the site. AbiliTrek (abilitrek.com) is currently building a hotel database using crowdsourced reviews of properties’ service to people with physical challenges. We expect more progress in this important area.
NYC’S NEW TRANSIT APP
For all the complaining that New Yorkers and visitors to New York City do about public transportation, the city’s MTA system of subways, buses, and light rail remains one of the most convenient and affordable ways to get around the five boroughs of Manhattan, the Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, and Staten Island, and suburban destinations as well. A brand-new MTA app, MyMTA, available for iOS and Android, allows riders to gain up-to-the-minute information on schedules, delays, and other breaking news that can make navigating the city easier, and certainly take some of the where-the-heck-is-my-train-I’m-already-late mystery out of the experience.