Cybercrime in the Hospitality Industry

1 Hotel industry The hotel industry is one of the most targeted by cybercriminals. This is probably because the guests hosted in hotels always have money to spend and are not very familiar with the hotel’s security system. Threats to a hotel’s cyber security include malicious guests, rogue employees hackers. These threats come with security risks which include the possibility of threat actions like phishing attacks, downloading malware, point of sale/ payment card attacks, scams, and access to sensitive data. Some vulnerabilities that an attacker may take advantage of include an insecure network, failure to change passwords regularly, weak passwords, an outdated system, and employees and guests who click links in spam messages (Panai, 2018).

How to Mitigate the Risks When an attacker intrudes on a network, he/she may get access to sensitive information like emails, passwords, and credit card info and use them for a scam. Some may also trick their victims into installing malware like ransomware, which may give them control over the victims’ accounts, and demand a ransom before they allow the victims to regain control of their accounts.

One way of minimizing the risks is changing passwords regularly.

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2 This may prevent attackers who pose as guests or guests who collude with cyber attackers from accomplishing their mission. Hotels should also use strong passwords which are difficult to guess.

At times, the attackers may access a network through phishing. Telling guests to avoid clicking links in spam emails is, therefore, an effective way of mitigating cyber-attacks in the hotel industry. Another technique is training employees on cyber security and stipulating consequences for not defying security protocols (Cyber Risk GmbH n.d.). Guests also ought to be briefed about security protocols when they visit the premises.

References Cyber Risk GmbH (n.d.) Cybersecurity training for managers and employees working in the hospitality industry., Cyber Risk Awareness and Training. Retrieved March 23, 2023, from https://www.cyber-risk-gmbh.com/6_Cybersecurity_Training_Hospitality_Industry.html Panai, E. (2018). A Cyber security framework for independent hotels. IoT Security Institute Publications: Gold Coast, Australia, pp. 1–12.