Travel scams are getting harder to spot. Here's how to stay safe

Travel scams are evolving, with artificial intelligence helping fraudsters create convincing websites and use stolen data to increase their odds. Florent Silve, an executive at Engine, said scams that once looked fake are now harder for consumers to spot. A Federal Trade Commission report released in June found Americans lost $3.5 billion last year to scams involving impostors contacting them through text, email, phone, social media and search engines; nearly 1 in 3 fraud reports were impostor scams. Experts warn that attacks can start before the flight. Reservation hijacking and “flight cancellation” messages are highlighted, with advice to avoid paying via links and instead call hotels or rebook through official channels.