Buckle Up and Hunker Down ~ It's Hurricane Season

Travel scams are getting harder to spot.

Here’s how to stay safe

Pickpockets were once the biggest worry for travelers heading to new destinations on vacation.

But travel scams have become more sophisticated, and scammers using new artificial intelligence tools have become better at creating fake websites and using stolen data to their advantage, said Florent Silve, an executive at Engine, a corporate travel management platform.

“What used to look like a fake website now becomes much harder to spot by consumers,” Silve said. According to a Federal Trade Commission report published in June, Americans last year reported losing $3.5 billion to scams in which impostors contacted them through text, email, phone, social media and search engines, though those weren’t all travel scams. Nearly 1 in 3 fraud reports were about impostor scams, making it the most reported fraud category.

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The Good Samaritan’s guide to safely helping during an emergency

Emergencies require quick action, but many people hesitate to step in because they’re worried about doing the wrong thing or even facing legal consequences. Fortunately, by understanding a few basic principles, you can make a meaningful difference while waiting for professional first responders to arrive.

Imagine witnessing a car crash, seeing someone collapse at the gym, or finding a neighbor who has fallen. Most people instinctively want to help, but many hesitate. They worry about making the situation worse, being blamed if something goes wrong, or even being sued for trying to assist.

Those concerns are understandable, but they shouldn't prevent someone from taking lifesaving action. In the United States, Good Samaritan laws offer legal protections to those who act in good faith and provide reasonable assistance during a medical emergency. 

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