MAny travlers have a false sense of security when they enter an airport completely dropping common sense at the sliding doors. Hopefully that changes after you watch the video above where TSA agents were caught but only after stealing over $1,000 a day from the security line.

What You Can Do

The first step is to be aware that airport thefts can happen and you should be as cautious as you would at any public, crowded place. Pickpockets and other thieves also travel so don’t spread out your things at the gate or charging station without a high degree of awareness. Corrupt TSA agents are another threat because most people don’t suspect them. (Plus they police themselves.) To deal with the security line, you need to prepare.

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Advanced Security

Pack the things in your pockets, wallet, phone, watch, all deep inside of your carry on and do this before you get to the security line. That way the TSA agents won’t know what’s in your bags and it’s a lot more difficult for them to do a quick grab. Never leave your valuables, cash, wallet, or phone out in the open in a bin by itself.

Stuff a jacket on top of your things inside of your backpack and if you want to go an extra step, you can hide things in zippered pockets. Speaking of those, zip up your backpack as it goes through the security line.

Streamlining

In the video above you’ll see a process I call streamlining. This is basically black belt levels of travel preparation you can use to protect your valuables and even get through the security line faster than you have been. None of these strategies on their own will completely prevent theft but when combined, many you’re less likely to be a target. Stay with your things as you go through the security line, use your eyes, and hide what you want to protect.

AirTags are Apple’s disc-shaped solution to lost keys, purses, pets, and wallets. The problem is their shape makes them too bulky to fit in a traditional wallet – let alone a slim one. That’s where Ridge’s Tracker Card comes in. The credit card shape, thickness, and weight make it perfect for slipping into a wallet but without the AirTag’s ultra-wide band chip are they any good?

You can see in the video above I put them to the test and learned they have a significant limitation.

The Stolen Wallet Test

I had two friends take my wallet – one with an AirTag and the other a Ridge Tracker Card to see if I could find either of them within 20 minutes. Both devices use Apple’s Find My network and should give you a notification when they leave your (phone’s) vicinity. Unfortunately, in both cases, it took over 10 minutes to get that notification. That cut my search time in half and while the Ridge Tracker Card did ping more often than the AirTag, the updates were minutes apart.

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Getting Lost

Yes, in both cases I was not able to track down my wallet. Both the Ridge Tracker Card and AirTag simply weren’t updating frequently enough – in a large and crowded part of a European capital city – so I would expect in less densely populated areas it would be even worse. My pickpockets were always one step (or three) ahead of me.

Of course in an actual pickpocketing, the thieves would likely ditch and AirTag immediately. A Ridge Tracker Card is less conspicuous so there’s a chance it wouldn’t get discarded quite as quickly. Still, the most likely scenario is someone stealing a wallet, walking a few blocks away somewhere quiet to unload the money and cards, and leave everything else behind.

Not All Is Lost

Both the Ridge Tracker Card and AirTag have a number of uses but these are not GPS devices. They don’t update frequently enough to actively track someone in most cases. For lost items though, they can be useful to get a location, be notified you left your wallet at home, or that a kind barista is safeguarding the wallet you forgot at the cafe.

Where time is critical, an AirTag and Ridge Tracker Card might just be a bit too slow for you to keep up with a crook.

It sounds straight out of spy novels but finding hidden cameras in hotels and other accommodation rentals is not unheard of. Cameras are getting smaller, better camouflaged but on the flip side the tools to detect them have improved as well.

Watch the video above to see hotel room search for hidden cameras, then follow the guide below the next time you check in.

Visual Inspection

The first step is to use some of the most sophisticated lenses on the planet – your eyes. Look for items that are out of place, don’t match the room decor or design, or otherwise are doubled up. For example, there may be two alarm clocks (with one in a drawer). Hotels order furniture and accessories in bulk so differences in brands, makes, especially in larger hotels should stand out.

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Take a close look around the room and inspect anything you have suspicions about.

Know The Lenses

Hidden cameras and microphones can look like anything. You should be aware that wall chargers, television remotes, smoke detectors, and alarm clocks (to name a few) are some common form factors. All of these types of hidden cameras and mics can be bought online, found easily, and cost $150 or less.

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They’re fairly sophisticated and can stream directly to an app the spy is using as well as a build in SD card. Use your visual inspection to take a close look at these items – which may actually work as the devices they’re disguised as – and look for any additional pinholes or glass covers.

Detector Time

It’s after you’ve completed your visual inspection that you can use something like the K18 or X13 bug detector. The K18 is a little more powerful but both devices detect radio waves that something like a smoke detector shouldn’t need. Even if it is a smoke detector that uses wifi for monitoring, a hidden camera detector can draw your attention to such devices so you can take a closer look.

Remote controls can be especially tricky since we expect them to emit some amount of waves that could set off our detector. Again, that’s where your eyes come in. Focus on the areas someone is most likely to bug you – like the bath and bedrooms, be alert, and after a 10 minute inspection for electronic bugs you can move on to bed bugs.