Gordon Meyer

Use a QR Code for Luggage Tag Privacy

The other day, I saw a brilliant idea come across my Instagram feed. I only wish that I knew who posted it so I could give them credit.

Instead of putting your telephone number or address on a luggage tag, the idea is to use a QR code with that information.

By now, thanks to the pandemic, everyone knows what to do with a QR code, and obfuscating your details in this way prevents a nefarious person from glancing at it and putting it to ill use.

I used the QR generator built into Apple's Shortcuts app to make mine, and then I printed them using a label printer.

But you don't need any of this. The easiest way to make a QR code is to follow the instructions that I posted earlier. It doesn't require a special app, just your web browser and DuckDuckGo.

Note: If you're using it to create a phone number tag, which is what I did, preface the phone number with TEL:. (i.e., tel:+13125551234567) This tells the scanning device that it's a telephone number for dialing, and the "+" ensures it works internationally. An iPhone will automatically do the right thing without these details, but you want this to be universal, so this is the surest approach.