12.07.2006

Hotel Card Keys: Gateway To All Your Secure Personal Information Or Urban Myth

[Ed. update: See the update to this noted here, with thanks to Andrew (not Tobias) for the information he shared.]

Andrew Tobias, by way of Kevin Drum at Political Animal of The Washington Monthly, provides some tips on how to secure your private and personal financial information and details from theft (identity or otherwise), among them the advice to destroy rather than turn in the card keys you get when you stay at a hotel or motel.

This, Tobias reports, is because the card key gets encoded with all your details, including credit card number, your home and work address, etc. When you leave, employees and others can access the details still encoded on that card key.

While comments left at Kevin's indicate the card key information may be more urban legend than vital tip, Kevin says the rest of Tobias' recommendations look quite solid.