![]() While you are sleeping, you wake up to find all your belongings gone.Another variation of this scam includes a Good Samaritan that was helping you stow your luggage suddenly takes off with your bag and/or hands it off to a runner near the front of the bus.a stranger helping you stow your bag above your seat while his accomplice picks your pocket or slashes your backpack.It’s important to remain diligent while traveling on a bus and keep an eye out for these travel scams. Bus Scamsīuses can be one of the riskiest places to be separated from your belongings when traveling. And when in doubt ask the people around you. Officials will never ask for more money than they need. Ask the ticket desk how much it is to upgrade on the train and know the full cost of the ticket before getting on. The best way to avoid paying extra fees is to do your research. The real offical simply stamped our tickets and moved on, How to Avoid ThisĪvoiding this travel scam can be tricky especially in a place like India where figuring out the train system is complicated. It wasn’t until another official came by later to look at our tickets that we realized we were scammed. When they asked to see our tickets, they told us we were in the wrong class and compartment but told us we could stay if we paid the upgrade fee. They looked official complete with a notebook and official badge. Official-looking men boarded the train to ask for our documents. This is a difficult travel scam to catch since we are conditioned to trust the police. When traveling in India, we came across many fake officials on trains that tried to separate us from our money and documents. “Many friendly locals in India offered us advice and helped us when in need”. Instead, ask them to take you to the police station where you will be happy to show your documents. Don’t ever hand over your documents if you feel that something is fishy. Every so often on trains and in the streets, you will come across fake officials who ask to see your documents. When traveling you’d think that you should be able to trust the police or security. If someone tells you that you have something on your back, do not take off your backpack to check! Instead, keep walking, ignore any “Good Samaritans” and only remove your bags when you are in a safe and secure location. The point of this travel scam is to get you to take off your backpack, purse and/or camera. Then, a seemingly innocent bystander will come to tell you that you have something on your back or offer you a tissue. The thief will either smear something on your back or the substance will be thrown at you from an unknown location. There are two variations of this travel scam but it starts out with someone putting something, such as mustard or ketchup ( there have been reports of human/animal feces being thrown at travelers), on your body. Distraction – ‘You have Gunk on You’ Scam It may just be an innocent bump, but if someone is trying to pick my pocket, they won’t succeed. I am always aware of my valuables and my attention immediately goes to my things before they can catch my attention. Pay Attention – Whenever I am bumped on a subway, bus or in the street, my hand immediately goes to the zipper of my over the shoulder bag. ![]()
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