BALTIMORE — Holiday travelers are the target of scammers.
Staffing shortages plus winter weather left thousands of passengers trapped at the airport last year. Many of them relied on notifications from their airline to find out when they'd be able to get to their destination. And while airlines have become more reliable, travelers may still receive notices, and sometimes these alerts are designed to do something else.
“Scammers just cast a wide net, and send out text messages saying your flight has been canceled, your flight has been delayed. Click on this link,” said Angie Barnett, president and CEO for the BBB of greater Maryland.
Travelers are directed to a website that looks similar to an airline. They ask for personal information or demand a change fee.
“Why do we fall for this? Because millions of people are flying,” Barnett said.
She expects to see a resurgence of this scam during the busy holiday travel season as well as fake customer support numbers. Barnett warns that just because the number appears first in your search engine, it doesn't mean it's for the company.
“We underestimate scammers in that they actually pay for advertisement, they boost themselves up so that they come up first in the search,” said Barnett. “We really encourage you to be careful when you're looking for a customer support number. Go directly to that website.”
And if you're looking to apply or renew your passport, double check the website.
“I went to Google search and I typed in passport renewal,” said Karen Hensley, who fell into this trap earlier this year.
Somehow she navigated off the State Department's website and onto a page requesting sensitive information.
“They started asking for more than what you normally need for a passport renewal. I didn't really know that at the time but later when I got the correct site, after all this, I saw that they didn't need my parent's birthdates and places of birth, or my husband's social security number,” said Hensley. “My advice is, of course, make sure you're on that government site again and again, and I did that but I learned you’ve got to check every step of the way.”
The good news is that airline cancellation rates are at a five-year low, and traveler refunds are up more than $2.5 billion since 2020.
When traveling it's important to know your rights if you experience any delays or cancellations, and contact the U.S. Department of Transportation with any complaints.
If you have a trip coming up, make sure to download the airline's app before heading to the airport. There you'll find the latest and most accurate information.
And click here for more information on travelers’ rights based on the airline.