The hidden pitfalls of travel apps

Kenoxios | 28 Jan 2025

Let’s take a deep dive into app permissions and privacy this summer.

Any seasoned traveler will know just how many single-use apps are downloaded over the course of an average vacation. Everything from watching movies on the plane to checking into your hotel—even accessing your tickets to a theme park or show—requires a download of some type. What might surprise you is that many of those travel apps that you downloaded and forgot about are still grabbing data from your device long after you arrive back home.

To save you the pain of finding out your data has been sold to a vendor or lost in a breach, let’s dive into a few popular travel apps, what kind of data they collect, and how to mitigate any potential security risks and privacy concerns.

Airbnb

As one of the most popular apps, Airbnb also tops the charts in possible privacy concerns. To use their platform, Airbnb requires a photo of a government-issued ID or passport, which is fairly uncommon among similar services