Hotels in hackers’ sights as technology replaces personal touch
Hospitality businesses are the third most targeted for cyber attacks as they gather more customer data
Hotels and hospitality businesses are now the third most targeted by cyber attackers of all industry sectors. Despite being bricks-and-mortar enterprises — set up for physical enjoyment of their amenities — they have become a rich mine of data for hackers with nefarious intentions.
Before Covid-19 forced hotels into a two-year period of on-off closures, they were the victims of 13 per cent of cyber compromises, according to Trustwave’s 2020 Global Security Report — ranking just a little lower than retail and financial services companies.
And with hotels facing a difficult pandemic recovery and acute staff shortages, the increased use of technology to replace face-to-face services such as check-in and on-site payments has only raised this risk.
"Historically, hospitality has been a personal service but I think they have started to realise that technology can facilitate a lot of that,” says Tristan Gadsby, chief executive of hospitality consultancy Alliants.