It's Going to Be a Big Summer for Travel Scams, Here's What to Look Out for

Delta is not giving sophisticated women $1,000 flight credits, for starters.

Recently, there was a promotion floating around on social media that suggested that Delta Air Lines was giving out $1,000 flight credits to women over the age of 40. I presume that it was an offer intended to be tied to the upcoming Mother's Day holiday, but here's the thing: the promotion wasn't a real Delta promotion.

I reached out to a Delta representative and confirmed as much—which means that there was some random website trying to collect the personal information of women with a very misleading premise. At best, you're signing up for some very annoying emails. At worst? A stranger is going to steal your identity to make very dubious bitcoin investments.

And don't get me wrong—you aren't a fool if such an enticing offer ensnared you. It's a tough economy, and the promise of $1,000 is quite the lure. And if you're like me, you saw this and perhaps began to fantasize about how you could become the reverse-sugar-mommy to a sophisticated older woman like Gillian Anderson. You'd romance her and embark on an ultra luxurious Delta flight, courtesy of this online promotion.

But! As we'e established, Delta is not giving out those $1,000 flight credits. But it is not likely to be the only misleading flight deal you and yours will see on social media this summer. As travel continues to get more and more popular in 2023, scammers out there will be seeking to take advantage of our wanderlust with these sort of juicy, scheming deals that will simply steal your bank account information. Try being a sugar mommy when your credit score is in the gutter. It is impossible.

So here are a few tips when it comes to taking advantage of flight deals without getting taken advantage of. Feel free to pass on to your fun and sophisticated aunties active on social media, and tell them I say hi, too.
 

  • Check the source. Airlines are never subtle when it comes to deals. If you see a promotion advertised, head to the airline's official website to see if the sale is listed there. If it's not, the promotion is likely not affiliated with the airline.
  • Don't give out personal information. If you are booking a flight—even a discounted one—you'll be asked to give your bank and personal information when you're checking out, which is nearly always done through the airline or a verified third party platform like Expedia or Priceline.
  • Look for flight deals on trusted travel websites. A little self promotion here: Thrillist is always covering flight deals, promos, and freebies. There are also a dozen other sites out there that are reporting on flight sales. If you don't recognize the publication or website offering a deal, search for the deal elsewhere.
  • Don't trust urgent messages. There are definitely flash flight sales from airlines that only last a day or two, but don't trust any messages or social media posts that say you need to give over personal information in the next few minutes to lock in a price. This idea that you need to rush can leave you vulnerable to fraud—always take five to 10 minutes (at least) to verify the deal or promo you're seeing with the airline or a trusted news source.
  • Real airlines will not ask for alternate forms of payment like gift cards. Gift cards are fraudsters' best friends. It's an easy way to get virtually traceless online payments sent to them, and there's little recourse you can take once you send over that money. If a promotion or flight deal ever asks for payment in the form of Visa gift cards, Amex gift cards, or Google Play cards, that's a huge red flag.


Delta is aware of these fraudulent scams and has indicated that they receive reports of them regularly. On its website, it states that they often appear in the form of  "fraudulent emails, social media sites, postcards, gift card promotional websites claiming to be from Delta Air Lines and letters or prize notifications promising free travel." The airline noted that it "do[es] not market to our customers this way, but individuals or groups intending to gather and use your personal data for their gain can be inventive in their approach —often adding messages to generate a sense of urgency so you take action."

Need more advice on avoiding scams this summer? We've got a guide on how to keep your money, identity, and peace protected during festival season, with advice from a Visa fraud expert, as well as new advice on how to protect yourself against identity theft while traveling.

Looking for more travel tips?

Whether you need help sneaking weed onto a plane, finding an airport where you can sign up for PreCheck without an appointment, or making sure you’re getting everything you’re entitled to when your flight is canceled, we’ve got you covered. Keep reading for up-to-date travel hacks and all the travel news you need to help you plan your next big adventure.

Looking for more travel deals?

Here's our running list of all the cheap travel deals you can book right now, and you can head here for all the latest flight deals plus cheap things to do and savings on hotels, cruises, trains, and more to help you plan for your next trip.

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Opheli Garcia Lawler is a Staff Writer on the News team at Thrillist. Follow her on Twitter @opheligarcia and Instagram @opheligarcia.