It is said that you should never take anything with you on vacation that you are not prepared to . . . → Read More: Security]]>

It is said that you should never take anything with you on vacation that you are not prepared to lose.

However, if your possessions are lost or stolen while travelling it can be very inconvenient and annoying, even if you are able to replace them quite easily (often for much less than you originally paid).

There are people out there who prey on tourists and travellers, as there are at home. And just like at home there are simple precautions you can take to prevent yourself becoming a victim of crime or loss.

Most of them don’t cost you anything, they are just habits to get into which after a while should become part of your daily routine so you can stop worrying about them and enjoy your trip.

And anyway, in many countries (and especially outside of the tourist areas), the risk of having something stolen from you isn’t that great. You are more likely to be cheated by unscrupulous sales people, or fall victim to opportunist theft. Wherever you are in the world, even normally honest people be tempted if you leave your valuables lying around.

General

The best way to avoid the attentions of would-be thieves is to look like you have nothing to steal. Walking around with expensive gear and jewellery on show is inviting trouble wherever you go in the world. If you do need to carry it then at least hide it deep in your bag.

For example, nothing says that you have an expensive piece of electronic equipment hidden around your body more than two little white cables dangling from your ears. At the very least you should hang your iPod headphone cables behind your head and run them down your back under your shirt or jacket.

Even better, get some headphones with black cables that go behind your ears and don’t dangle in loops in front. That way, and especially if you have slightly longer hair, you can make it look like you aren’t wearing any at all.

My personal choice is ‘ear-hook’ headphones which I use with my music player. The best I’ve found are Sennheiser OCX 880 earphones which (under my longish hair) are almost invisible (shown here). In addition to their invisibility they have the best sound quality of any earphone I have had (and I have had a few in my time). I thoroughly recommend them for travel.

Try to keep both hands free when walking around. If you feel someone searching through your pockets on a train or bus it is a lot easier to stop them if you don’t have your hands full.

Whenever you stand up to get off a bus or train, always turn around to make sure you haven’t left or dropped anything. After a while this becomes a habit.

Always try to keep in contact with your bag and keep it within your sight. Carry it onto the train or bus yourself and keep it on your lap, and try to avoid external luggage racks (on top of buses, for example). If you do have to put it on top then if there are any stops along the way keep your eyes open and make sure nobody touches it.

If you have to take a taxi, make sure the bag goes in the trunk and watch it go in.

If you have to leave your bag anywhere, try to find someone relatively trustworthy to keep an eye on it. If there are a few people in a train carriage, for example, then you can try to make friends with them and hope they will watch your bag (and save your seat for you) if you need to get up and walk around.

Carry your day pack on your chest in crowded places instead of on your back. When in a line or queue, put your bag on the ground in front of you and push it along as you move.

When eating at a cafe or restaurant never put your bag, camera, purse or jacket on the back of the chair, even in places that seem quite ‘safe’ or are expensive. Keep it on the chair next to you or between your feet with one strap around your leg or the front leg of the chair.

Luggage

Bags are not very secure. Their portability means that a thief can easily carry them away if you leave them unguarded (they are designed to be carried, after all).

You can buy locks and cables that attach your bag to immovable objects which can prevent this, and you can also lock the zippers together on your bag.

Below is a selection of TSA approved locks. This means that TSA (the U.S. Department of Transportation Security Administration) agents and other airport security personnel can open them to inspect your luggage (using special tools), and then re-lock it for onward travel. You can distinguish TSA locks from regular padlocks by the red and white ‘diamond’ symbol.

The problem is that most travel bags in themselves are not very secure. The locks that come with most bags are very easy to open. Even if they aren’t, most zips are easy to break into.

But even if you have a bag that is locked to a solid object, sporting the best locks and zips, a sharp knife can easily cut through most nylon bags, and even a hard-shelled bag can be forced open.

Day sacks are especially vulnerable, some thieves will slash the bottom of your bag and then just follow you, waiting for everything inside to fall out.

There are solutions to even these problems, but the resulting bag or security measure may be heavy to carry around all day, so a combination of common sense and physical measures to protect your bag may be required.

I use a Pacsafe Stashsafe Hip Pack (shown here) as my personal day pack. It has slash-proof front and bottom panels, a slashproof and lockable belt, lockable zippers, a padded, breathable backing, and can be locked to secure fixtures. You can buy them in the US here.

Be aware that a really determined thief will probably just take your bag from you if given a chance, often with threats. Usually in these cases it is best just to hand it over as everything can be replaced (make sure you have travel insurance, too!)

Theft of luggage from hotels is probably the most common security problem for travellers. So make sure any room that you rent is safe and has a lock, and that you lock it whenever you leave. Also, remember to check that the windows are secure.

Bring your own padlocks to lock doors and windows if you can. Remember that even having a padlock is no guarantee of safety, even the best locks can be picked in a few minutes.

Make doubly sure that your bag is locked (and locked to something) if you have to leave it in your hotel room, even if this is just to deter the casual or opportunist thief.

Another solution (one which I use myself) is a personal travel alarm (shown here). They come in a variety of sizes and produce a deafening 120db-138db alarm that sounds when the pin attached to the cord is removed, and will only stop when it is replaced. It can also be activated by holding a button down.

It can be used as a door security device, or attached to a belt or waist band for personal security, or to a handbag/luggage for protection against theft. If anyone wants one of these very useful devices and can’t find one then email me as they are sometimes quite hard to get hold of.

Money, passports, tickets, etc.

There are a number of ways of carrying your valuables. The worst is probably with them sticking out of your back pocket.

Most travellers use some kind of money belt, each type has its advantages and disadvantages. The standard type wraps around your waist and is designed to be hidden under your clothes. One of the most popular makes is Eagle Creek (shown here). You can also buy these in the UK here.

Whichever you choose, always try to carry it with you all the time and wear it next to your skin under your clothes.

Use it to keep everything hidden and not as a substitute for a purse or wallet. Each morning you should take a small amount of money out of it which you can keep about your person to use for daily expenses.

If you are continually taking money out of and putting it back into your money belt then everyone will see your secret stash. If you have to dip into it during the day then try to do it somewhere away from prying eyes (and fingers).

Use a small purse or money clip in your front pocket for your daily cash. Some people sew zips or attach velcro across the opening of their pockets to stop pickpockets. A lot of travel clothing comes with this feature built in.

I use a WalletSafe (shown here) where I keep my loose change and one credit card for daily use. This attaches to a belt loop and has a snatch-proof, low profile metal chain, with lots of zips to prevent currency from falling out if the wallet is dropped. You can also buy them in the US here.

A standard money belt is a pouch with a belt that goes around your waist and should be worn under your clothes. It may seem to be more convenient if you wear it over your clothes, but this makes it very easy to steal (a quick snip with scissors or a knife on a crowded train).

There are money belts that look like regular belts, but these are not designed for carrying passports or large items, just a few bills and some documents (these have to be folded quite small to fit, however). They are good for emergency cash and for keeping things like contact number lists and traveller’s cheque receipts safe. I use an Eagle Creek all terrain money belt (shown here).

Another popular type is the round-the-neck pouch. These are easier to see and to steal, however, than the round-the-waist type.

One possible problem with money belts is that thieves are well aware that travellers wear them. Casual thieves may be deterred but a determined thief will know exactly where to look if your pockets are empty.

A better solution is a money pouch that hangs inside your trousers from a waist loop. The loops are often colour-coded to match your belt and it can be very difficult to see if you are wearing one. If you keep just your passport, tickets, travellers cheques and some cash in them then they are virtually undetectable under your clothes. Any more than that, though, and they can show a distinct bulge, and wearing them does take some getting used to. My personal choice is the Eagle Creek Hidden Pocket (pictured here). Also available in the UK here.

If you can sew, then you can make your own secret pockets in your jeans, or inside your skirt or trousers.

Another good idea is to make or buy a slash-proof belt (or a slash-proof strap for your camera, phone, etc. (shown here)). These have a flexible steel wire inside and are almost impossible to cut through. You can also buy belts and bags with these straps built in.

At night sleep with your money belt or pouch (or any other valuables) under your pillow or inside the pillowcase (and remember it is there in the morning!), or wear it while you sleep if it is comfortable enough. At the very least hide it deep inside your bag (and lock that to something heavy).

Once, whilst returning from a trip to Italy, I met a man on a train who was travelling dressed . . . → Read More: Document Security]]>

Once, whilst returning from a trip to Italy, I met a man on a train who was travelling dressed only in a swim suit and a towel. He had left his bag on the beach for just a few moments to paddle in the sea. When he returned it was gone, along with his passport, money, tickets and all of his clothes (apart from his towel).

As well as a lesson on the importance of looking after your possessions as you travel, strangely enough this story also shows how little you really need to take with you. People (including myself) made small contributions to his funds and food supplies (although none had donated any clothes when I saw him), and sympathetic train porters and guards had let him on the train without many questions.

A number of people each year have everything stolen from them as they travel around the world. Most just go to the local shop and buy what they need and go on with their trip. This is made more difficult if you have no access to money, and you definitely will have trouble crossing international borders without your passport.

Of course, the best thing is to avoid getting into situations such as this in the first place. Some ways of doing this, such as physical security (money belts, etc.), are covered in the ‘Packing’ section under ‘Security‘. The following gives some basic tips and ideas for protecting and gaining easy access to your essential travel documents.

Making Copies of Everything

With the exception of cash, there is almost no paper or document that cannot eventually be replaced while travelling if you keep a copy or a record of it. You will probably not lose any of the items below but if you do and have taken elementary precautions, you will be able to get them replaced with the least amount of trouble.



The way I usually do this is to gather together all the documents listed in the ‘Papers‘ section of this website. Then I empty out my travel wallet / money belt and make photocopies of everything.

You can use the photocopier’s zoom function to make everything really small (but readable) to fit two or three documents onto one page. You can also copy on both sides of the paper.

It is not necessary to photocopy every page of your passport, just the photo page and current visas, perhaps. This should make it a lot easier to replace them if lost or stolen. Also, take a copy of your birth certificate to help you get a new passport.

At the same time I make photocopies of all the financial information listed in the ‘Money‘ section of this website, such as credit cards, traveller’s cheque serial numbers, insurance policy numbers, bank accounts, social security number, the serial number on your camera. and so on.

Another, more high-tech, way of duplicating important information is to use a scanner to make electronic copies and then store them on a computer or removable storage. Once a document is scanned it can then be stored using an online file storage service, or even emailed to yourself for retrieval from anywhere in the world (even if you are only left with your swim suit).

If you don’t have a scanner then the local copy shop should be able to help out. As a last resort you can use a digital camera to take pictures of credit cards, passport pages, etc.

Another good idea is to give the photcopies/scans to a trusted friend at home whom you can call on the phone from anywhere in the world to retrieve the information (well, the text and numbers parts, that is, not pictures, obviously). Or if you are travelling with a companion then you can also swap documents with each other.

Encryption

If most of this sounds quite insecure (i.e. having multiple copies of everything, including credit card and bank account numbers thereby multiplying opportunities for loss or theft), then don’t worry! There are some tricks to make the copies more secure.

The safest ways to do this are usually electronic. Scanned documents saved as text files or pictures (jpg’s, gif’s etc.), can be encrypted and compressed (using, for example, Winzip with a password). Email and server storage are quite secure, too. However, bear in mind that this is completely dependent on how strong your passwords are. Also, be careful when retrieving your data from a computer that isn’t yours (for example, in an Internet cafe) as key-stroke logging software may be installed.

A good way to avoid this, and also for securing paper copies, is not to write down the real numbers at all, but simply to alter them in some manner known only to yourself. One method I used to use was to alter one digit (the last number of a credit card number, for example) by, say, adding a 1 to it. Reversing the number can work too, as well as complicated things like multiplying the whole thing by, say, 2 or 6, and so on (and remembering which!).

Portable Storage

Recently, I have been using various portable methods of storing encrypted documents. Most small electronic devices around these days can be used for this, some more obvious than others.

For example, I have encrypted zip files with scans of my passport(s), financial data (credit cards, traveller’s cheque numbers, etc.), licenses, guide books, and so on, copied to a small flash drive which fits quite nicely in my Eagle Creek all terrain money belt (shown here).

Just as a test to see what is possible, I have also made copies of the same zip file onto my camera (copied via USB from my hard drive to the camera’s memory stick folder), my phone’s memory (using Bluetooth to connect) and my iPod (enabling disk use and copying it to the Notes folder), plus I have emailed it to myself as an attachment. And, of course, the original file stays on my laptop.

(If anyone wants any help doing things like the above then email me and I can explain further. If there is enough demand I will write a separate page on it on this website).

There are a number of ways of carrying money, or at least getting access to it, as you travel.