It's the ultimate summer Instagram cliché: the perfectly curated shot pre-holiday shot starring the champagne flute (or latte, or green juice, or pint - whatever your poison), the passport, and the tucked-in boarding pass - arranged so as to leave your destination just visible enough to fill your followers with serious life envy. A subtle reminder to your friends that, yes, you do have the perfect life, and yes, you are #blessed. Hands up if you're guilty?
However, it turns out that your innocent holiday #humblebrag might not be the best idea - and no, not just because you'll look awfully smug and a little bit (whispers) basic.
According to a recent post from security blog Krebson Security, your boarding pass brag might be jeopardising your personal details. As we all know, Instagram isn't exactly the most private of online mediums, and can allow strangers to learn a lot about you in a very short space of time. As the post reveals, 'Two-dimensional barcodes and QR codes can hold a great deal of information, and the codes printed on airline boarding passes may allow someone to discover more about you, your future travel plans, and your frequent flyer account.' Scary stuff.
The blog goes on to reveal that there are websites dedicated to reading the data stored in airline barcodes and QR codes, which would allow a user to learn the frequent flyer number, full name and flying details of the pass holder. The next step would be the ability to change seats, view details of and even cancel any future flights.
The moral of the story? Quit the humblebrags - or if you can't possibly entertain the idea of heading to Heathrow without announcing it to your following, make sure the code on your boarding pass is safely covered. It's either that, or resorting to the humble Facebook check-in...
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