Delete that Picture of Your Boarding Pass | Dixie Safe & Lock Service Inc.

What better way to show off where you’re going while simultaneously updating your followers on your trip’s progress than taking a picture of your boarding pass in the airport? If you’ve done this or considered doing it, you’re not alone. Thousands of your fellow travelers have done the same, and it has opened them up to some very serious potential consequences.

If you’ve ever been tempted to take a picture of your boarding pass to share with the world, DON’T do it! Here’s why.

You wouldn’t expect someone to be able to cancel the next leg of your trip or gain access to your entire itinerary off a quick Snapchat of your boarding pass, but depending on your carrier that’s certainly a possibility.

Some boarding passes include a booking code, and some airlines use that booking code as what amounts to a password. British Airways, for example, allows you to log into your flight reservation page with the booking code and passenger last name. Once you have access to the reservation page you can see not only future flights but also passport numbers, expiration dates, citizenship and date of birth. Not only could someone cancel or alter your flight plans, they could also steal your identity with that information.

QR codes are also a common component of boarding passes, and there are easy-to-find phone apps and websites that allow you to scan QR codes to easily access the corresponding data. A boarding pass QR code generally contains all the information appearing on the boarding pass itself, but it could also include additional personal details that aren’t printed on the paper copy.

As of 2015, United Airlines was still utilizing frequent flyer numbers as a veritable password. They even star out most of the characters of this number if they send it to you in mail correspondences, presumably with the intention of signaling to passengers the importance of keeping it private. If the company didn’t want you to keep it a secret they wouldn’t go to such lengths to prevent others from seeing it. But if someone scans the QR code on a United Airlines boarding pass, which is easy to do if you post a picture of your boarding pass on a social network, that full frequent flyer number will be revealed.

Take a picture of your plane on the tarmac from the terminal, post a pic of a smiling flight attendant, or snap a fancy cocktail with one of those little colorful umbrellas – there are lots of ways to show off your vacation to your followers without showing them your boarding pass and the confidential information it may contain. If you see a friend or loved one post their boarding pass, send them a friendly, urgent message to delete it before someone takes advantage of them.

For security matters closer to home, you can always trust Dixie Safe & Lock Service Inc. When residents and businesses in the Houston area need safes or security systems installed or repaired – or car keys retrieved from the interior of a locked vehicle – they can turn to Dixie Safe & Lock Service Inc. for fast, worry-free service. Give us a call at 713-643-5767 for any and all of your security needs.

We can’t protect your identity if you post a picture of your boarding pass on social media, but we can help protect your home, business and personal property!