SAN ANTONIO – Before you pack your suitcase to fly somewhere for the holidays, the Defenders have a warning aimed at keeping your travel plans and personal information safe.
Paper boarding passes contain lots of personal information, in addition to a traveler's name and boarding gate.
San Antonio International Airport spokeswoman Evelynn Bailey said most travelers don't realize how much personal information is embedded in the bar code of paper boarding pass.
Depending on the airline, it can range from their name, address and travel destination to credit card information.
All a thief needs to steal that information is a bar code-reader and a picture of the ticket.
And they don't even have to be at the airport to do it. Lots of people like to post photos of their boarding passes on social media when they're about to take a trip.
"People for some reason feel very comfortable about posting a lot of information on the internet that they really shouldn't be posting," Bailey said.
She said never post a picture of your boarding pass because if the bar code is visible, anyone with a bar code-reader has access to its information.
She also said to never have your boarding pass out at the airport where someone can snap a picture of its bar code.
Click here to see airport travel tips for the holidays.
"The best thing to do is hide your boarding passes," she said.
It's advice that had one recent San Antonio airport traveler making a small change to help protect herself against identity theft.
"I should put it in my pocket after I go through security and shred it once I'm done with it," the woman said.
Bailey agreed shredding is a good idea.
Even better, she said, skip the paper and instead download your boarding passes onto your smart phone, then delete each one after your flight whether it's during the busy holiday season or any other time you board a plane.