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Stay Safe When Traveling

  • Checks. Leave checkbooks and checks at home, in a locked safe.  Use cash, traveler’s checks or credit cards for purchases. Chances are that you will not be writing checks. Leave these and any extra debit cards or credit cards that you will not be using at home.
  • Leave bills at home. Business travelers often take advantage of quiet evenings in hotels to catch up with bookkeeping and paying bills. Unfortunately many people have access to your room while you are at meetings and victims have reported that account information and check information has been stolen this way.
  • Wallets & Purse. Don’t take anything in your purse or wallet that is not absolutely necessary. Leave all cards with Social Security Numbers on them at home. If necessary, make a photocopy of a health card, cut off the last 4 numbers of the Social Security Number from the photocopy and carry that with you. Make sure that you have an emergency phone number (contact person) for emergency medical personnel to use. 
  • Put Things On Hold. Put your mail on “postal hold” stating that for a period of time you wish to have your mail held at the post office. We prefer that term rather than “vacation hold” so that postal clerks will not know that you will be gone. 
  • Make your home look lived-in. Arrange for friends or family you trust to pick-up newspapers, mail, and advertisement flyers in order to avoid drawing attention to your home. This will reduce the risk of break-ins which may result in the loss of valuables, including your identity.  Nothing says “we’re out of town” more than a pile of newspapers. Don’t forget to stop delivery until you return. Also stop any other automatic deliveries, such as bottled water.
  • Neighbors, relatives and house-sitters. If you have someone that is going to check the house and has a key to your house, then lock up any documents with account numbers or Social Security Numbers.
  • Register in the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program: Visit https://step.state.gov/step/ to enroll in STEP, which provides comprehensive traveler information, including travel alerts and restrictions; information on visas or vaccinations; crime, stability and road conditions; laws of the country you’re visiting; and consular contact information.
  • Scan important travel documents and store them in a secure online repository. In the event that your information is lost or stolen, using an online repository allows you to easily access copies of your passport, drivers license, visa, and any other vital identification from anywhere in the world. Remember to do this for every person traveling with you, including children.
  • Leave your debit card at home. Make credit cards, not ATM cards, your card of choice.
  • Minimize number of credit cards in wallet. No more than two (2).
  • Place all the removed items above into a locked safe.
  • Pay bills before you go out of town.
  • Stop delivery of newspapers or any other items you may normally have delivered (water, automatically scheduled deliveries of products, etc).
  • Make copies of your itinerary, passport data page, visas and driver’s license to leave with designated emergency contact.
  • Notify a neighbor to watch your house. Let them know you are not moving.
  • Go through your wallet, purse and/or briefcase and remove any of the following items prior to travel:
    • social security card
    • check book and deposit slips
    • birth certificates
    • credit card receipts
    • bills
    • extra credit cards
    • library card

The information and resources above and within the articles are provided for your convenience through eFraud Prevention and should not be considered an endorsement of products, services or information provided, or an assurance of security or privacy provided at the linked site. Bristol County Savings Bank does not own or operate these sites and does not guarantee the accuracy, completeness or timeliness of the information contained therein. We encourage you to review their privacy and security policies which may differ from Bristol County Savings Bank.  Bristol County Savings Bank assumes no liability for any loss or damage resulting from any reliance on the material provided.