A Connecticut-based hospitality operator recently discovered a data breach in its payment processing systems that could affect the data of thousands of customers. HEI Hotels & Resorts says that the data breach has impacted brands including Hyatt, Westin, and Marriott. The 20 affected hotels are in 10 states and the District of Columbia.
The hackers first started collecting customer data back in March 2015 and continued through the end of June 2016. The hackers were able to collect customer names, credit and debit card account numbers, card expiration dates, and security codes. Hackers were able to steal this information when hotel guests used their credit and debit cards at hotel restaurants, bars, and spas.
Security experts say that the breach has been contained so no new payment cards will be affected. HEI is also reconfiguring parts of its systems to fix the data breach. The company doesn’t know exactly how many customers were affected by this breach, but according to the reports, the payment data has been connected to tens of thousands or transactions.
The HEI breach is another reminder to the hospitality industry that it is extremely vulnerable to malware. Hackers like to target hotels and resorts because they collect data every day from hundreds of customers. That data often gets distributed throughout the hotel, so hackers have a chance to capture information when it’s in transit.
The hospitality industry should invest in cyber security monitoring to prevent hackers from conducting breaches. Hotels can use Endpoint Manager (EM) to keep their networks free from malicious software. Below are five features from EM that can be useful to the hospitality industry:
- Vulnerability scanning
- Application control audits
- Continuous monitoring
- Vulnerability risk assessments
The data breach at HEI shows that the hospitality industry is still vulnerable and targeted by hackers, but with Endpoint Management, hotels and resorts can keep their customer data secure.
No comments:
Post a Comment