General Security

• If possible, speak with female flight attendants about the destination, asking them for personal observations on safety and local attitudes.
  
• Victims of crimes should keep any police reports, as insurance companies may request the documentation.
  
• In public places, choose seats by aisles when possible to make a quick exit easier.

Preparing for a Trip

• Bring a flashlight
  
• Pack as lightly as possible, to avoid being hampered by large bags while traveling to a hotel, or in case a quick exit from a hotel room necessary
  
• Consider renting or buying a mobile phone. Seek out emergency numbers for destinations, and put the numbers on speed dial.
  
• In addition to checking the weather before going lo a destination, check the sunrise and sunset times.

Health

• Kidnap and ransom insurance is available.
  
• Check that any medical prescriptions (including birth control pills) are properly filled and clearly labeled.
  
• Check 1o see that the destination country permits the medicines in question (e.g., Japanese customs officials do not allow some prescription drugs into Japan, even when accompanied by customs declarations).
  
• Women travelers should bring feminine hygiene supplies, as these can be hard to find or ill-packaged. Toilet paper and sanitary wipes may be useful as well.
  
• Travelers should not accept any drinks from people who are not well known to them. If a bartender is preparing a drink, watch closely. Do not leave drinks out of view.

Personal Information

• When registering for events, travelers should use only their last names and first initials.
  
• Remove I.D. badges after meetings.
  
• Store passport and identity documents in a safe place, and carry photocopies. Consider doing the same with credit cards and airline tickets.
  
• If possible carry only one credit card.
• Consider using prepaid phone cards, instead of using a phone card or a phone card number.
  
• Tear any name and address information off magazines before throwing them away or leaving them on the plane.
  
• Guard any PIN numbers with particular vigilance, and use ATMs within hotels if possible.

Luggage

• Use covered luggage tags, addressed with an office or relative's address.
  
• If placing a bag on the floor, place a foot on the strap.
  
• Women should consider using inconspicuous luggage that does not denote affluence or femininity.
  
• Women should use a handbag with an inner zippered pocket and a strap too thick 1o be easily cut. Wear the strap across the body, against the stomach.
  
• Consider wearing a money belt. Half-slips with pockets sewn into the seam are also available for women travelers.

Airports

• Shield from view documents or logos that denote citizenship (for example, hold a U.S. passport with the eagle logo facing inward, or under other papers while standing in line).
  
• Mace and pepper spray are illegal in many counties. If transporting them, put them in checked baggage
  
• If carrying, a computer, do not place it on the X-ray belt until just before going through the metal detector. Some thieves work in teams, with one thief deliberate y holding up the line while the other picks up a laptop that has passed through the X-ray check.

Renting a Car

• If apprehensive about getting lost, hire a taxi and follow it to the destination.
  
• Carjackers often try to distract drivers' attention to get them to stop, or bump them from behind. If a minor accident occurs, do not stop: drive to a lit, busy area (preferably a police-station) and exercise caution. If driving to such an area is not feasible, stay in the car and blow the horn to attract attention.
  
• Keep all items out of view within the car, including maps and guidebooks.
  
• Do not rent hatchback cars, as they do not conceal possessions well.

Transportation

• Do not use unmarked taxis.
  
• Pay a taxi driver while still in the car to ensure the proper change.
  
• When possible, avoid putting luggage in the trunk of a taxi, to facilitate a quick exit, if necessary
  
• Be wary when boarding or exiting a bus or train, or riding escalators, as pickpockets tend to strike at these times.
  
• Once registered at a hotel, keep a hotel business card to show taxi drivers where to go.

Hotels

• Choose a hotel in a busy area. A tea-room indicates that there are many women guests. Smaller hotels with small lobbies, and reception desks near the entrance or elevators, are deterrents for loitering criminals.
  
• If reserving by phone, ask about 24-hour security, guards and the lighting in the parking area. If considering a hotel while driving by, avoid areas by pawnshops, liquor stores and clubs. On checking in, verify working hours for parking and gym attendants, and avoid being in those facilities alone. -
  
• Women should ask a female employee, not employed in the reservations function' about the area. Check with bellhops also.
  
• Inquire about staff services to escort guests to their rooms late at night
  
• Have gratuities ready for porters and doormen, to avoid exposing a wallet
  
• Study a map before leaving the hotel. Ask a concierge to mark any dangerous areas on the map.

Hotel Rooms

• Request a room near the elevators, away from catwalks and terraces. Rooms above the first two floors are less likely to be robbed, but rooms above the seventh floor may be out of reach of fire rescue. The room should have a safety chain or bar lock, and a peephole. It should not open to the outdoors.
  
• On arrival at the room, if the door is open or unlocked, do not enter. Return to the desk and ask someone to act as an escort
  
• Check the room's closet and bathroom on first entry to be sure it is empty.
  
• Lodge a rubber doorstop under the room door for extra security against intruders. You might want to carry one with you.
  
• Hang expensive clothing under other clothing.
  
• Ask the concierge to book any reservations, and ask the restaurant to book a taxi for the return trip.
  
• Do not leave "Please Make Up Room" sign outside the door. Call housekeeping instead.
  
• When leaving the room, place the "Do Not Disturb" sign on the door, and leave the television or radio on.
  
• Avoid permitting hotel staff in the room. If a person claiming ~ be a hotel employee insists; on entering, call the front desk and verify the person's identity and reason for coming into the room.
  
• Travelers should unpack only to the extent that if a quick exit is necessary, they can take crucial items.
  
• Compact, portable noise alarms are available to deter break-ins. These can be quickly and easily installed, and re moved.
  
• Battery-powered, compact portable smoke-alarms - -available, as are supplemental lock and stops for sliding glass doors.
  
• When showering, keep valuables in the bathroom.

On the Street

• Walk with head and shoulders erect, arms swinging to convey confidence.
  
• Always keep a safe distance when walking past strangers on the street or in dark areas.
  
• If calling for help, shout ~FIRE~ rather than ~HELP!
  
• Carry bags away from the street side.
  
• If asking directions is necessary, ask families or women with children. Phrase the question on along the lines of ~Where is [destination]? I am meeting my husband there.'
  
• Be wary of gypsies in some cities, especially those carrying babies as they might surround you, counting on your concern about the baby while they try to pick your pocket, take your purse or luggage.
  
• Travelers should have subway fare ready when entering the station, so that thieves cannot see where travelers' wallets are kept

Common Scams
Listed below are some ploys used by pickpockets to distract travelers:

• One person covertly smears toothpaste on a traveler's shoulder, pointing it out as bird droppings and offers to wipe it off (usually with a large handkerchief. As one thief wipes off the toothpaste and distracts the traveler, a partner picks the traveler's pocket.
• Children carrying newspapers or cardboard sheets swarm around the traveler, holding the sheets in front of the traveler's face and stealing luggage or picking pockets.
• A woman holding a life-sized doll, which looks like an infant, suddenly shouts and throws the ""baby" at a traveler. The traveler scrambles to catch the doll, and thieves pick the traveler's pockets or steal luggage.
• Women wearing long dresses and posing as street vendors surround a traveler closely, talking loudly and waving pamphlets or merchandise. Children hidden under the women's skirts pick the traveler's pockets.
• One thief will grope a traveling woman on a crowded bus or subway. As she is indignantly looking around for the culprit, another thief reaches into the traveler's purse.

Government Addresses

• US DEPT. OF STATE: CONSULAR AFFAIR: http://travel.state.gov/
  
• US Dept. of State-- http://www.heroes.net/
  
• Counter Terrorism-- http://www.state.gov/www/global/terrorism/index.html
  
• FBI - Home Page: http://www.fbi.gov/
  
• Central Intelligence Agency: http://www.odci.gov/cia/

Security/Law Enforcement Related Addresses

• American Society for Industrial Security -- http://www.asisonline.org
  
• Security Management Online: http://www.securitymanagement.com
  
• International Association of Chiefs of Police: http://www.amdahl.com/ext.iacp/
  
• National Industrial Safety Board -http://nisb.jcte.jcs.mil/
  
• Corporate Security Resources Page -- http://chelsea.ios.com/~glenz/
  
• Pinkerton Risk Assessments -- http://www.ipn.net/pinkerton.html
  

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