McAfee has officially published the results from its 2025 Safer Summer Travel Report, where it was revealed that U.S. travelers are actively cutting back on personal spending, hunting for deals to afford vacations, and researching scams before they book, but having said so, many still continue to struggle against spotting online threats when they appear.
Going by the available details, this particular pattern is further made evident by statistical evidence which claims that, even though 65% of Americans say they research common travel scams before booking, 1 in 5 have fallen victim to a travel scam during the booking process. Among those who were scammed, 13% lost more than $500 and 5% lost over $1,000.
Markedly enough, men were found to be more likely than women in the context of losing money to travel scams (29% vs. 18%).
Looking beyond that, younger travellers emerged as far more prone to victim to these scams than other generations. You see, 21% of 18–24-year-olds have clicked on fake confirmation links, whereas on the other hand, 10% of 25–34-year-olds have been misled by AI-altered travel images, the highest rates of any age group.
Taking a deeper view of all the cost-cutting which is driving these phishing attacks, we begin from how 38% of surveyed Americans are already skipping meals out, 44% are passing on entertainment, and 25% are delaying home upgrades just to make room in the budget for a trip.
An estimated 30% of Americans plan to travel to a major sporting event, where the excitement of the experience, urgency to secure tickets, lodging, or airfare, can increase scam risk. Nearly 60% of those travelers say they’re worried about getting tricked by fake ticket sales or other forms of online fraud.
From that lot, 42% of travelers were found to search for deals on accommodations, 36% on flights, and 35% on excursions. Making the situation even worse would be the fact that nearly 59% of Americans still trust third-party booking sites as much as booking directly,
If we break it all down, we would learn that 1 in 10 Americans has clicked on a scam confirmation link, whereas on the other hand, 1 in 10 (8%) has entered payment details on a fake site. Furthermore, almost 5% have encountered manipulated images of a travel destination, with 4% tricked into booking accommodation or trips that didn’t exist.
McAfee also took this opportunity to share some measures Americans can take before they travel, as well as during the course of their vacation.
For instance, the report in question asked for greater vigilance around emails, text messages, and fake travel deals that can give scammers the access of your personal information. Hence, one must avoid clicking unknown links or sharing personal details.
The next tip is to check rental listings. This involves doing a reverse image search to uncover fake listings, as scammers often use real property photos or AI-generated visuals.
You can also leverage Use McAfee’s Scam Detector to remain protected from email, and video scams by automatically spotting risky links, detecting fraud across devices, and running manual checks on suspicious messages.
Turning our attention towards what one can do while on vacation, they can start with steadfastly verifying all details. We say so because scammers can pose as hotel staff or tour guides.
You must also use a VPN whenever on a public Wi-FI so to keep your data secure at all times. On top of that, travellers are further advised to carry a backup charger, considering it can help you avoid public charging stations, where “juice jacking”1 is a possibility.
McAfee even stressed the importance of staying cautious with fake QR codes that can lead to scam websites.
“As Americans plan their summer getaways, cybercriminals are planning too, using increasingly sophisticated tactics to exploit travelers,” said Abhishek Karnik, Head of Threat Research for McAfee. “With a significant number of people surveyed falling victim to travel scams, it’s clear that staying vigilant is more important than ever. Taking just a few extra seconds to verify a deal or website can be the difference between a great trip and a costly mistake.”
