Cyber Security A Must for Travel Business

In the tourism industry, collection of personal data is the routine. But, in recent times, data breaches have become more common and travel companies are in the radar of cyber criminals who are out to exploit loopholes associated with data security.

While industry players strive to secure their information, it is a proven fact that no one is exempted from data theft.

All these assaults are perilous to a company's productivity and greatly damage their goodwill. This is why it is important to protect yourself by anticipating the threats.

Data theft a child's play!

According to reports collected, about 70% of hotels in North America and Europe expose their customers' personal data. The figure is quite alarming given that it impacts the entire tourism sector regardless of status or location. The main reason for this is the confirmation emails the hotels send to their customers after each booking. Such emails contain an active link for allowing customers directly access to their reservation in the hotel or may be any travel portal.

To ensure hassle-free booking for customers, hotels often integrate their reservation code and email into the URL.They often share such information (usually contains your name, passport number, address and phone number) with third parties. To make matter worse some establishments do not bother to encrypt the links mentioned in the confirmation emails. This is a real boon for hackers!

Are travel professionals at risk?