Planning to travel? Report reveals worst cities for tourist frauds

A recent report by the Mastercard Economics Institute has identified the worst cities for targeting tourists for scams. The report highlighted that Bangkok, Cancun, Hanoi, and Dhaka reported high levels of fraud.

According to the report, the travel industry is one of the sectors most susceptible to fraud. Last year’s data suggested scams rose 18 per cent during the summer peak season and 28 per cent in the winter peak season.

“Fraud in travel agencies and tours is more than four times higher than the global average,” the report said. “Taxi and car rental services also face relatively high levels of fraud. In contrast, fraud is less common while booking transportation such as flights or trains and is even lower in the hotel sector.”

The lowest travel-related fraud rates are in San Francisco, Dublin, Seoul, Budapest, and Edinburgh, according to MEI. On the other hand, places such as Cancun, Hanoi, Dhaka, and Bangkok tend to report higher travel-related fraud rates.

Describing the types of fraud in different cities, the report added, “In cities like Cancun, Delhi, Barcelona and Hong Kong SAR, a major share of payment-related fraud happens with travel agencies and tour operators. In contrast, Phuket and Antalya see more fraudulent activity related to hotel bookings. Food services are the primary target for fraudsters in Riyadh, Manila and Los Angeles.”

Holiday seasons increase fraud risks

The report explained how the risk of fraud can increase during the holiday season as travellers actively search for bargains during peak vacation times.

“Scammers capitalise on this by presenting offers that seem too good to be true, encouraging customers to make impulsive decisions without verifying the legitimacy of the deal. As criminals exploit the surge in transactions and the travellers' heightened eagerness, fraud rates rise during both the summer and winter peaks.”