Protect Your Identity During a Summer Abroad

You're lucky enough to spend a whole summer abroad — whether it's to study or just travel the world alone. As a college student, you probably don't need very many luxuries to get by and will probably lodge in budget-friendly youth hostels, sometimes sleeping ten or even twenty to a room. Living in cramped quarters and meeting other young travelers is all part of the adventure, but no matter how much fun you're having, never let your guard down. Identity theft is a big problem in the United States, as the elderly, online shoppers, and other individuals are victimized by hackers and criminals overseas. But when you have your identity compromised in a foreign country, the problem becomes a lot more time consuming and complicated to fix.

Protecting your identity involves more than monitoring your bank account and making sure someone doesn't steal your Social Security number: after all, your SSN doesn't mean anything overseas. You should, however, watch over your passport as closely as possible and make sure it's locked up in a safe place while you sleep. Depending on what country you're in, losing a passport can mean a major inconvenience or serious trouble: if you're traveling in a country that isn't always on very friendly terms with the United States or that is much less disorganized bureaucratically, you could be harassed by local or even national law enforcement if you can't present your documents. Before you even go abroad, write down all of the numbers and addresses of the American embassies in the countries in which you're traveling or studying, just in case.

To protect your bank account, try to pay in cash whenever possible. Use official bank ATMs to withdraw cash and avoid using your credit cards in smaller shops, if they even take cards. This strategy will drastically decrease your chances of someone copying your bank account information and draining your funds. Put your wallet zipped up in a pocket in your purse or use a money belt to keep your cash safe.

Summer abroad should mean exploration, self-discovery, adventure, relaxation and even resume-building experiences. But if you lose your passport or your bank account information is stolen, you'll end up spending your trip trying to win back your identity. Keep your passport with you at all times, and lock it up when you're sleeping. Pay in cash whenever possible, and always be smart about traveling alone and meeting new acquaintances.