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When booking elements of a trip or paying for travel costs along the way, veterans should be careful not to use official military IDs or documents to get discounts, as that could increase the risk of identity theft, according to Veterans Advantage (VA), via a PRNewswire press release.
VA, founded by prominent Vietnam War veterans, are creators of the VetRewards Card, which their bio says is, "the first secure military ID card designed to protect Military and Veterans' privacy when verifying eligibility for military discounts."
Their list of participating companies includes United Airlines, JetBlue Airways, National Passenger Railroad Corporation, Amtrak, Greyhound, Choice Hotels, Wyndham Worldwide Corp., Avis Budget Group Inc., and others well-known brands.
As a further warning, VA warns veterans to "avoid online military identity verification services that lure them with discounts or holiday sale promotions in order to sell their government's record of military service to retailers." Online startups that do this are violating privacy and making illegal use of government military data.
VA stated that according to the FTC, members of the military and veterans experience twice the rate of ID theft as the general public. In light of this issue, the company has reached out to Senator Richard Blumenthal from their home state of Connecticut to address these unethical data collection practices. The senator, a Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Veterans Affairs, has verified that his is looking in to these issues.
"With Veterans Advantage, military, veterans and their families are protected against identity theft," declared Scott Higgins, CEO, Founder and Vietnam War Veteran. "Our member services include protection of personal information with the VetRewards Card that safeguards the member's identity when redeeming Veterans Advantage discounts, and with complimentary identity theft restoration services."
Interested veterans can find out how to sign up for the card on the VA website.
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