Hidden danger in your duty-free shopping receipt revealed

A Perth man has revealed a disturbing piece of information printed on his duty-free receipt and has warned others of the hidden detail.

A Perth man travelling from Kuala Lumpur International Airport to Phuket in Thailand has made an alarming discovery at the bottom of his duty-free receipt.

In a warning to other travellers, Colin Ahearn shared a video of his alcohol purchase on Facebook, showing the receipt for a bottle of Wild Turkey American Honey Liqueur and Smirnoff Red Label Vodka that he’d paid for while in the duty-free shopping area.

But after arriving at his holiday destination, Mr Ahearn’s wife Tracey noticed a string of personal details printed at the bottom of his duty-free receipt moments before he was going to throw the receipt in the bin.

The receipt from his duty-free purchase shows passport details printed on the paper.

Shocked, the Australian tourist discovered key personal information had been printed on his receipt, including his full name, date of birth, passport number as well as his flight details after handing over his travel documents to make the purchase.

“I was about to throw the duty-free bag out along with the receipt, Trace looked at it and said, ‘Look what information is printed on it!’” he wrote alongside the video he shared to Facebook.

“If you just throw this in the bin, it’s got your passport number, your full name, your nationality, your date of birth, when your passport expires, where you’re flying out of.

“Essentially, if someone goes through and finds that information, they’ve got your full passport details.

“Not a good thing to have your passport number just floating in the bin on a piece of paper.”

Mr Ahern and his wife decided to publish the video on Facebook as a warning to other travellers who may simply throw their duty-free receipt in the bin without checking what information it contains first.

The receipt contained personal information obtained from when Mr Ahearn handed over his passport when purchasing alcohol in duty free.

The video, shared to Just Don’t Drink Spirits In Bali, has racked up 118,000 views and more than 430 shares.

An identity theft expert told Yahoo News the information on the receipt was “very concerning”.

“I would think because if that isn’t discarded properly or the person doesn’t appreciate the risk if someone is to go through a rubbish bin, then it’s certainly the case that those details could be useful (for identity theft),” he said.

“The problem is once the cat is out of the bag those details tend to stay out there. It’s very dangerous when someone is known to be overseas.”