Being duped or having your pocket picked can ruin a holiday. Mark Roddenhas some tips for staying away from danger
WHEN YOU'RE ON holiday or a gap year, never forget that some people specialise in trying to take advantage of your relaxed state of mind. At best you might lose a little cash to an opportunist pickpocket. At worst a con man might escape with so much of your money or cause so much trauma that the experience threatens to undermine your vacation.
"When we're travelling we want to see the best in people," says Tom Hall, who writes for Lonely Planet guides. "We're travelling to a new place, we don't want to offend anybody and we also want to be quite relaxed and have a nice time. So people do let their guard down, but quite often they simply leave their common sense at home."
One way this manifests itself is when holidaymakers act in ways they wouldn't at home. "Things can happen to quite sensible people," says Seona MacRéamoinn of Usit, the travel company. "People get taken in by the excitement of a new place. You want to be open to new things and you don't want to be distrustful, but you just have to be sensible and not take the kinds of risks that you wouldn't ever take at home."
Your risk of being tricked increases significantly under the influence of drink or drugs. "When you're in a new, unfamiliar city with people that you don't know that well, getting out of your skull is not a good idea," Hall says. "If you do that, you're much more likely to be separated from your valuables or your wallet."
Credit-card skimming can have a crippling effect if it happens abroad, says Conor Flynn of Rits Information Security. Whether thieves empty your account or a quick-acting bank blocks the skimmed card, you can be left stranded in unfamiliar surroundings without ready access to cash.
"If you're abroad in a strange city you're not going to walk around with a big wad of bills hanging out of your back pocket, down dark streets into dodgy areas not knowing where you're going. Yet people are perfectly happy to use their credit card and give it to a waiter or a waitress in a bar or a seedy area and let the credit card disappear and come back to them in 10 minutes. They'll have paid for what they expect to be paying for, but the credit card is likely skimmed at that stage," Flynn says.
Flynn advises people not to leave credit-card receipts lying around their hotel rooms, as they are a trove of information for somebody with malicious intentions.
More sophisticated ruses can also be used to try to access your credit-card details. "When people are using their credit cards abroad they're typically more relaxed and fall victim to what we call social-engineering techniques," Flynn says. "What they're trying to do is to catch the person unawares or lull them into a false sense of security. Often they use things like language barriers to make it sound like they're doing the right thing and helping you out."
It isn't too difficult to stay safe abroad. "If you can keep yourself safe when you're walking around the streets of Dublin at night, you can almost certainly do the same on the streets of pretty much any city in the world," Hall says.
"In the end gut instincts and judgment are what carry you," says MacRéamoinn. "If you get any sense that there's something odd, it's better to err on the side of caution."
Only a small percentage of tourists are ever targeted, so don't get so paranoid that you miss out on mixing with locals - which is one of the points of travel, according to Hall. "You've got to throw yourself into things and you've got to be trusting," he says. "You can do all that while keeping your common sense and not getting out of your face. Doing all those things will keep you safe and ensure you have a wonderful time."
Five common scams to watch out for
Friendly stranger
One of the oldest pickpocketing tricks involves someone making a fuss of wiping off the white substance - bird droppings, apparently - that has appeared on your shoulder. Walk well away from the seemingly charitable person before cleaning yourself up. Treat any strange diversion with caution.
Fake policeman
Common in countries where there is a prominent police presence, such as in Latin America and parts of eastern Europe, this ruse starts when a "policeman" asks to see your passport. To your surprise, he says something is wrong with it or your visa - and he will let you off only if you pay a hefty fine. Don't hand over any money until the officer takes you to a police station to prove he is a policeman.
Unofficial taxi
Tired after your flight, to jump the queue and save some money you decide to take an unlicensed taxi to your hotel. Soon after your journey has begun you find the price has multiplied. So stick to licensed taxis. If you do find yourself in this situation, then demand to be taken back to where the trip started.
Credit card call
A scam to emerge in recent years sees con artists phone a hotel room late at night, pretending to be from reception. They explain that there is some confusion over your bill, or with forms you filled in on arrival, and ask if you can confirm your credit-card number. Confused by the late call and just wanting to get back to sleep, you oblige - and they clean out your account. Never give your credit-card details over the phone. Go to the front desk.
Asian gems
This fanciful scam begins when a helpful guide or taxi driver offers to bring you to a jewellery store that has a fantastic sale on. The owner then tells you how much money you can earn reselling his gems when you get home or promises to post you some that you could sell on for a huge profit. Listen to the part of you that knows this is too good to be true.