Technology

Holiday travel privacy risks and how to stay safe

Published

1 month ago

December 3, 2025

Holiday travel privacy risks and how to stay safe

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Holiday travel is stressful enough with crowded airports, expensive flights and last-minute itinerary changes. But there’s a hidden part of the travel industry most people don’t know about: your personal data is being harvested, packaged and sold every time you book a flight, reserve a hotel room or check a travel app.

Whether you’re traveling for a Christmas break or booking early for New Year’s, the companies you trust with your most sensitive details—full name, home address, passport info, travel dates and device data—are sharing and selling far more than you think.

And during the holiday rush, that data becomes a goldmine for scammers.

Let’s unpack how this works, which companies collect the most and what you can do before you travel to keep your personal information out of the wrong hands.

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PROTECT YOUR DATA BEFORE HOLIDAY SHOPPING SCAMS STRIKE

Holiday travel brings more than stress because every booking and check-in quietly generates personal data you may not realize you are giving away. (iStock)

Why holiday travel puts your data at risk

The holiday season is the peak period for travel-related data collection. Airlines, hotels, booking platforms, loyalty programs and travel apps all experience massive traffic spikes—millions of Americans are searching for deals, comparing prices, checking gate changes and re-booking delayed flights.

Every one of those actions creates trackable data points, including:

Email address
Phone number
Full name and DOB
Address history
Travel itineraries
Passport or ID data
Device fingerprint
IP address and location
Shopping habits and spending patterns.

You might assume this data stays with the airline or hotel. It doesn’t.

Most companies share it with advertisers, analytics firms, data brokers and dozens of unnamed “partners.” Some even use your data to profile you—how often you travel, how much you’ll likely spend and whether you’re a “high-value” target.

That information can easily leak into scammer databases, which is why holiday travelers suddenly see:

Fake “your flight is canceled” texts
Phishing emails that look identical to hotel confirmations
Bogus baggage fee requests
Fake TSA PreCheck renewal notices
“Urgent re-verification required” messages.

Scammers rely on the fact that you’re stressed, rushing and expecting travel updates. And because they already have your personal data, their attacks are frighteningly convincing.

STOP FOREIGN-OWNED APPS FROM HARVESTING YOUR PERSONAL DATA

Airlines, hotels, apps and booking platforms collect far more information than most travelers know and that data often gets shared with advertisers and data brokers. (AP Photo/Ryan Sun)

Examples of what major travel companies collect

Here are real-world examples of how holiday travel platforms collect and share your data:

1) Airlines (Delta, American, United, Southwest)

Major U.S. airlines collect not just your name, phone number and email, but also travel companions, payment details, geolocation data, device data and loyalty-program activity.

They share this with:

“Marketing partners”
Analytics platforms
Third-party advertisers
Data-enrichment firms.

Many of these partners, over time, become part of the data broker ecosystem.

2) Booking platforms (Expedia, Booking.com, Hotels.com)

Each booking platform details what it collects in its privacy policy. Oftentimes, these sites track:

Search history
Price views
Device fingerprint
Click behavior
IP-based location
Payment attempts—even abandoned carts.

This is used to build profiles that determine what deals you’re shown and how aggressively you’re targeted.

3) Hotel chains (Marriott, Hilton, IHG)

Marriott’s privacy policy and other privacy statements list over 60 categories of data it collects. Some chains were caught sharing guest data with:

Ad networks
Social media platforms
Third-party “guest experience” tools
Affiliate networks
Data brokers for cross-device tracking.

Cybercriminals have been using the information of over 500 million Marriott guests, exposed during a four-year-long breach that started in 2014, to craft and execute travel-themed scams to this day.

4) Travel apps (Airbnb, Hopper, KAYAK, TripIt)

These are some of the most aggressive data collectors because they run nonstop on your phone. Many collect:

Real-time location
Contacts
Clipboard data
Behavioral analytics
Device ID
In-app browsing.

Some of these firms then “share information with partners for marketing enhancement,” which is typically code for data selling.

YOUR DISCARDED LUGGAGE TAGS ARE WORTH MONEY TO SCAMMERS

Scammers use leaked travel details to send fake flight alerts, hotel messages and urgent payment notices that look real because they already have your personal information. (iStock)

How scammers use your travel data

Once your information enters the ecosystem, scammers build travel-themed attacks designed to hit you at the worst possible time. Some common examples include:

Fake airline notifications: (e.g., “Your flight has been canceled, click here to rebook”)
Urgent hotel “payment failure” emails: Scammers use leaked address and booking data to send emails that look exactly like they’re from the Hilton or Marriott
Fake baggage fees: (e.g., “Pay $24.90 to release your checked bag”)
TSA and Global Entry renewal scams.

This isn’t guesswork. They already have your name, flight, hotel, location and travel dates—because the travel industry’s data partners sold or leaked them.

How to protect yourself before you travel

Here are my top steps to staying private this holiday season:

1) Check what data the travel companies already have

Hotels, airlines and booking sites all have data removal options—though they’re buried in their privacy settings.

2) Stop apps from tracking your location

Turn off location permissions for apps like:

Hopper
Airbnb
Expedia
HotelTonight.

Many track you even when not in use. Here’s how to do it for iPhone and Android:

On iPhone: Open Settings, tap Privacy & Security, then tap Location Services, scroll down to the app and tap each app, and set location access to “While Using the App” or “Never,” and turn off “Share My Location” if you don’t want them to see your exact spot.

On Android: Open Settings, tap Location, then choose App location permissions or App permissions, find the app and tap it, and change each one to “Allow only while using the app” or “Don’t allow” so they can’t track you in the background. (Settings may vary depending on your Android phone’s manufacturer.)

3) Remove your personal data from data broker sites

This is the most important step. Even if you stop airlines and hotels from collecting new data, your existing data is already circulating through dozens of data brokers, and that’s what scammers use to target travelers.

Data brokers hold:

Your travel patterns
Address history
Email and phone details
Income level
Household info
Your family members’ names.

You can manually request removal from hundreds of sites, but it takes months. That’s why I recommend a data removal service. While no service can guarantee the complete removal of your data from the internet, a data removal service is really a smart choice. They aren’t cheap, and neither is your privacy. These services do all the work for you by actively monitoring and systematically erasing your personal information from hundreds of websites. It’s what gives me peace of mind and has proven to be the most effective way to erase your personal data from the internet. By limiting the information available, you reduce the risk of scammers cross-referencing data from breaches with information they might find on the dark web, making it harder for them to target you.

Check out my top picks for data removal services and get a free scan to find out if your personal information is already out on the web by visiting Cyberguy.com

Get a free scan to find out if your personal information is already out on the web: Cyberguy.com

4) Use an email alias for bookings

An alias email reduces the amount of spam and phishing attempts you’ll receive. By creating email aliases, you can also protect your information. These aliases forward messages to your primary address, making it easier to manage incoming communications and avoid data breaches.

For recommendations on private and secure email providers that offer alias addresses, visit Cyberguy.com

5) Avoid airport Wi-Fi for anything involving payments

Scammers often run fake hotspots. So, avoid airport public Wi-Fi when accessing financial information.

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Kurt’s key takeaways

The holiday season is here, and many of us are getting ready to travel to see family and friends. As travel picks up, personal data collection and sharing also increases. Airlines, hotels and travel apps often share your information with unknown third parties, which scammers can use to target you during your trip. Before you pack your bags, take a few minutes to remove your personal data from online brokers. Doing this helps protect your identity and lets you travel with peace of mind.

How do you protect your personal information when you travel during the holidays? Let us know by writing to us at Cyberguy.com

Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson is an award-winning tech journalist who has a deep love of technology, gear and gadgets that make life better with his contributions for Fox News & FOX Business beginning mornings on “FOX & Friends.” Got a tech question? Get Kurt’s free CyberGuy Newsletter, share your voice, a story idea or comment at CyberGuy.com.

Related Topics:airlines cybercrime Featured Hackers Tech travel

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Technology

Disney Plus is getting vertical video

Published

10 hours ago

January 8, 2026

Press Room

Disney Plus will be getting a vertical video feed later this year, Disney announced as part of its Global Tech & Data Showcase for advertisers at CES.

Based on an interview with Erin Teague, Disney’s EVP of product management for Disney Entertainment and ESPN, Deadline reports that vertical video in the app could include “original short-form programming, repurposed social clips, refashioned scenes from longer-form episodic or feature titles or a combination.”

“Think all the short-form Disney content you’d want in one unified app,” Teague said onstage at Wednesday’s showcase. “Over time, we’ll evolve the experience as we explore applications for a variety of formats, categories, and content types for a dynamic feed of just what you’re interested in — from Sports, News, and Entertainment — refreshed in real time based on your last visit.”

Update, January 7th: Added quote from Disney’s Erin Teague.

Technology

Plastic bottles could power your devices one day

Published

10 hours ago

January 8, 2026

Press Room

Plastic bottles could power your devices one day

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Each year, billions of single-use plastic bottles end up in landfills or oceans. That waste problem keeps growing. Now, a new scientific breakthrough suggests those same bottles could help power your daily life.

Researchers have developed a way to transform discarded plastic water bottles into high-performance energy storage devices called supercapacitors. The work focuses on PET plastic, short for polyethylene terephthalate, which is used in most beverage bottles.

The research was published in Energy & Fuels and highlighted by the American Chemical Society. Scientists say the discovery could reduce plastic pollution while helping drive cleaner energy technology.

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SCIENTISTS EXTRACT SILVER FROM E-WASTE USING COOKING OIL

Discarded PET water bottles are one of the most common sources of plastic waste worldwide, with hundreds of billions produced each year. (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)

Why PET plastic waste is such a growing problem

PET plastic is everywhere. According to the researchers, more than 500 billion single-use PET plastic bottles are produced every year. Most are used once and thrown away. Lead researcher Dr. Yun Hang Hu says that scale creates a major environmental challenge.

Instead of letting that plastic pile up, the team focused on upcycling it into something valuable. Their idea was simple but powerful. Turn waste into materials that support renewable energy systems and reduce production costs at the same time.

NEW TECH RECOVERS 92% OF EV BATTERY METALS

Those upcycled materials come together to form an all-waste-plastic supercapacitor designed for fast charging and long term energy storage. (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)

How plastic bottles can store and release energy

Imagine a device that can charge fast and deliver power instantly. That is exactly what supercapacitors do. They store and release energy much faster than traditional batteries, which makes them useful for electric vehicles, solar power systems and everyday electronics.

Hu’s team found a way to build these energy storage components using discarded PET plastic water bottles. By reshaping the plastic at extremely high temperatures, the researchers turned waste into materials that can generate electricity efficiently and repeatedly.

Here is how the process works:

For the electrodes, researchers cut PET bottles into tiny, grain-sized pieces. They mixed the plastic with calcium hydroxide and heated it to nearly 1,300 degrees Fahrenheit in a vacuum. That heat transformed the plastic into a porous, electrically conductive carbon powder.

The powder was then formed into thin electrode layers. For the separator, small pieces of PET were flattened and carefully perforated with hot needles. This pattern allowed electric current to pass efficiently while maintaining safety and durability. Once assembled, the device used two carbon electrodes separated by the PET film and submerged in a potassium hydroxide electrolyte.

CIGARETTE BUTTS MAKE ROADS STRONGER THAN EVER BEFORE

Researchers use extreme heat to convert waste PET plastic into porous carbon materials that can store and move electricity efficiently. (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)

Why the results surprised scientists

When tested, the all-waste-plastic supercapacitor outperformed similar devices made with traditional glass fiber separators. After repeated charging and discharging, it retained 79 percent of its energy capacity. A comparable glass fiber device retained 78 percent. That difference matters. The PET-based design costs less to produce, remains fully recyclable, and supports circular energy storage technologies where waste materials are reused instead of discarded.

What this means for you

This breakthrough could affect everyday life sooner than you might expect. Cheaper supercapacitors can lower the cost of electric vehicles, solar systems and portable electronics. Faster charging and longer device lifespans could follow. It also shows that sustainability does not require giving something up. Waste plastics could become part of the solution instead of the problem. Although this technology is still in development, the research team believes PET-based supercapacitors could reach commercial markets within 5 to 10 years. In the meantime, choosing reusable bottles and plastic-free alternatives still helps reduce waste today.

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Think your devices and data are truly protected? Take this quick quiz to see where your digital habits stand. From passwords to Wi-Fi settings, you’ll get a personalized breakdown of what you’re doing right and what needs improvement. Take my Quiz here: Cyberguy.com.

Kurt’s key takeaways

Turning trash into energy storage is more than a clever idea. It shows how science can tackle two global challenges at once. Plastic pollution continues to grow. Energy demand does too. This research proves that those problems do not have to be solved separately. By rethinking waste as a resource, scientists are building a cleaner and more efficient future from materials we already throw away.

If your empty water bottle could one day help power your home or car, would you still see it as trash? Let us know by writing to us at Cyberguy.com.

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Technology

Amazon’s smart shopping cart for Whole Foods gets bigger, lighter, and adds tap-to-pay

Published

22 hours ago

January 7, 2026

Press Room

Amazon’s smart shopping cart for Whole Foods gets bigger, lighter, and adds tap-to-pay

Amazon is launching a revamped version of its smart shopping cart, which it plans to bring to dozens of Whole Foods locations by the end of this year, according to an announcement on Wednesday. The new Dash Cart features a “more responsive” item scanner that’s now located next to the built-in display, along with a new NFC reader that lets you tap to pay with your credit card or phone.

Amazon’s previous Dash Cart design put scanners beneath and in front of the handle, potentially making them harder to spot. It also only let you pay with the credit card attached to your Amazon account.

With the upgraded Dash Cart, you’ll find a new scale alongside the cart’s handle, which Amazon says “works in tandem with on-cart cameras, weight sensors, and deep learning models to ensure accurate pricing for every item.” The upgraded Dash Cart eliminates the large sensors facing inside the cart as well, offering a 40 percent larger capacity and a 25 percent lighter weight.

The Dash Cart shows an interactive map of the store on its display, similar to Instacart’s smart Caper Cart. You can sync your shopping list created with Alexa, too, and see how much you’re spending as you add more items to your cart. The cart uses built-in sensors and computer vision to detect when you’ve removed an item, allowing it to automatically update your total. When you’re done shopping, you can skip the checkout line and leave the store in a designated Dash Cart lane.

Amazon is launching its new Dash Cart as the company shakes up its grocery business, which has tied Whole Foods more closely to the Amazon brand. The company has already brought its new Dash Cart to three Whole Foods stores in McKinney, Texas; Reston, Virginia; and Westford, Massachusetts, along with two Amazon Fresh stores.