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elena_martynova

Hotel Cybersecurity: What Can Happen When Hackers Strike? | By Robert E. Braun - 0 views

www.hospitalitynet.org/...4080977.html

shared by elena_martynova on 18 Feb 17 - No Cached
  • Hoteliers remain vulnerable to hackers seeking confidential information such as guests' credit card data and employees' personal information.
  • In a recent hotel breach, the hackers did not go after confidential data, but rather sought a ransom payment after taking control of the hotel's technology.
  • hotels, more than most private industries, have to take into account the kind of physical harm that might be done by a hacker.
  • ...9 more annotations...
  • not only are guest information systems targets, but also the life and safety systems – HVAC, elevators, electricity and so on.
  • while financial theft could impact a hotel and its reputation, a hack of the physical structure of a business could put the hotel out of business.
  • Moreover, hotels are complex businesses with overlapping and interconnected systems. Thus, finding a way into one system can allow a bad actor to access other parts of the hotel, giving them the opportunity to demand payment for protection.
  • Hotel owners and operators should be aware that ransomware is increasingly popular because it provides for almost immediate return on a hacker's "investment."
  • Rather than selling personal information, which rapidly loses value, the use of ransomware gains the hacker an immediate return
  • Hotels need to take the same steps that other business take to achieve data security:
  • Analyze risk.
  • Train Personnel.
  • Plan for the breach.
  • elena_martynova on 18 Feb 17
     
    Theft of data by hackers remains the major threat to Hospitality Industry. Usually, hackers attack hotel point of sale for obtaining personal information. But now days hotel owners should be aware of ransomware which is becoming more popular among hackers as it provides the hacker an immediate return.
elena_martynova

The Top 7 Hotel Tech Trends for 2016 - Capterra Blog - 0 views

blog.capterra.com/hotel-tech-trends-for-2016

shared by elena_martynova on 12 Feb 17 - No Cached
  • the top hotel tech trends for 2016
  • 1. New Security Measures
  • It’s past time for a change, and 2016 will (hopefully) mark a new initiative in the industry: innovative tech security.
  • ...18 more annotations...
  • Hotels will also begin installing new check-in systems that accept chip-based credit cards and debit cards as a way to guarantee secure payment.
  • 2. Wearable Tech
  • MagicBands, which operate off their MyMagic+ system,  allow guests to “[book] transportation to a hotel from the airport and choos[e] where to eat. The MagicBand also serves as a room key and ticket for attractions, replacing the need to carry around bulky key cards and folded papers, both of which are lost frequently.”
  • It’s more effective for learning customer preferences than just relying on online guest reviews.
  • 3. Self-Service Check-in
  • And in a technological world where you can get just about anything at the touch of a button, your guests are going to start expecting the same immediate gratification from your hotel.
  • However, this technology can do more than just ease your guest experience. Using kiosks for self check-in can “sav[e] money on staffing, increas[e] its revenue[,] and increas[e] customer satisfaction,” says author Julie Weed.
  • 4. Cloud Computing (Total or Hybrid)
  • You need to keep all your software tools in one, centralized location that everyone can access.
  • as hotels are expected to invest in newer technologies to stay ahead of the curve, they also need to find ways to cut costs, and cloud computing has the potential to cut 50% of operational costs.
  • many companies employ a hybrid cloud, which can quell fears of sensitive data breaches by only storing some (not all) information on the cloud.
  • 5. Increased Presence on Social Media
  • it’s clear you need to be on social media to ensure users stay at your hotel rather than your competitors.
  • 6. Native Mobile Apps
  • While social media can get your name out there, making a native mobile app is another emerging trend that taps into your guests’ affinity for technology and ease.
  • Not to mention, these mobile apps are a good replacement for key cards, and enable smartphones or smartwatches to act as more secure room keys.
  • 7. Continued Industry Aversion to Tech
  • Technology has changed many industries, and in one that serves its guests face-to-face, it’s important to keep up with what those guests value. And a growing number of them value technology. It’s a part of their everyday lives.
  • elena_martynova on 12 Feb 17
     
    Tech innovations are the essential part of the Hospitality Industry. In the article the author tells us about the top hotel tech trends for 2016 which impact the industry: -new security measures, which is very important due to possible breaches -wearable tech, with just a wave of your wrist you can check in or enter your room -self service check-in, which ease the process -cloud computing, which cuts costs and flexible -presence on social-media, engaging with customers is very important -native mobile apps -continued technology development All these trends play a very important role in improving relationships between hotel and guest.
elena_martynova

TouchBistro Review: Best POS System for Restaurants - 0 views

www.businessnewsdaily.com/st-pos-system-restaurants.html

shared by elena_martynova on 03 Feb 17 - No Cached
  • TouchBistro is one of the most cost-effective POS systems for restaurants, especially for small businesses.
  • TouchBistro is an affordable and easy-to-use POS system that focuses solely on your unique needs. 
  • With TouchBistro, you don't need to invest in a lot of hardware, as you do with traditional restaurant POS systems. At the minimum, all you need is an iPad or iPad mini and a cash register to get started.
  • ...19 more annotations...
  • TouchBistro offers low-cost monthly plans that are well within most small businesses' budgets. Even better, plans are based not on features, but the number of licenses you need (one license per iPad).
  • If you'd like to test-drive TouchBistro, a free trial is also available.
  • Because TouchBistro is an iPad POS system, you're not stuck at the checkout counter. Servers can take your POS anywhere in your restaurant
  • TouchBistro lets you color-code tables and seats to make it easier to take and distribute orders, as well as to identify which server is associated with which table. TouchBistro also makes it easy to open tabs — for instance, by storing credit card information based on customers' names, which is particularly helpful in a bar or pub setting.
  • TouchBistro comes with Register Mode, which locks the system into a regular register.
  • TouchBistro helps them save time and their sanity by making it easy to split entire bills or different parts of the bill.
  • TouchBistro's intuitive interface makes it easy to add and use all types of modifiers and customer identifiers to make custom orders fast and easy.
  • TouchBistro keeps a record of these custom orders, so you can identify any trends and popular profit makers. 
  • Another time-saving feature we like about TouchBistro is its automatic pricing.
  • TouchBistro can also help you save time by automatically sending orders to the kitchen. Once orders are entered into the iPad, orders are automatically sent to the kitchen printer or device for fast, efficient turnarounds.
  • TouchBistro offers robust reporting tools to help you manage and grow your business.
  • TouchBistro can give you comprehensive and detailed views of how your business is performing, what your best sellers are, who your top servers are and more.
  • All customers get 24/7 phone and email support at no extra cost.
  • TouchBistro offers a personalized training program designed specifically for your type of restaurant.
  • TouchBistro is a strictly iPad POS system that relies primarily on an Apple-based infrastructure.
  • This is great if you're already an Apple user, but if you're looking for an Android- or Windows-friendly POS system, TouchBistro is not for you.
  • Second, unlike most POS services, TouchBistro is not a cloud-based POS system.
  • because TouchBistro doesn't rely on the cloud, it remains fully functional even without an Internet connection.
  • TouchBistro does recognize the flexibility that a cloud-based POS system offers, so some cloud functionality is built into the platform as well. This includes cloud reporting and analytics, so restaurant owners have access to their data anywhere from any device with an Internet connection.
  • elena_martynova on 03 Feb 17
     
    TouchBistro is the best POS system for restaurants. It focuses solely on features that restaurants need and it is a perfect solution for a small business. From a management perspective it has a a lot of positive time-saving features. -mobility, it can be taken anywhere -table or bar, easy to open tabs -lock in register -bill splitting, easy to split entire bill -custom orders -automatic pricing -send orders directly to kitchen -reports, help to identify trend and boost sales -anytime support -personalized training program As for disadvantages: -it relies on a Apple-based infrastructure, if you are looking for an Android POS system, it's not for you -it is not cloud-based POS system, it's work depends on the device and local network.
elena_martynova

Airline global distribution system Amadeus offers cloud scalability - 1 views

www.computerweekly.com/...adeus-offers-cloud-scalability

shared by elena_martynova on 27 Jan 17 - No Cached
  • Amadeus has begun offering a cloud service on the Google Compute infrastructure as a service (IaaS) platform to prevent the back-end flight-booking systems of the airlines from being overloaded by internet requests.
  • Traditionally, checking for seat availability – known as airline inventory – was mainly used by travel agents, but the growth of automated internet searches is putting airline IT systems under excessive strain.
  • Christophe Defayet, director of R&D, airline IT at Amadeus, said: “The problem we faced in the past year is the look-to-book ratio has increased. For the travel industry, we are trying to bring the best availability across all channels.”
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  • Caching flight inventory data to buffer internet-based queries is not effective
  • Cache-based systems within major shopping engines have certain limitations, and they do not accurately reflect our sophisticated revenue management policies
  • To overcome the limitations of caching, Amadeus has developed the Airline Cloud Availability service, which uses the Couchbase NoSQL database. According to Amadeus, the cloud-based system can help airlines cope with the huge increase in search and shopping volumes. 
  • By synchronising the airline’s central systems and the distributed instances of the airline’s availability calculation in real-time, Lufthansa said consumers can search and shop for offers more efficiently and receive 100% accurate results of the airline’s availability. At the same time, the airline is able to respond to the exponential growth in online flight queries.
  • The service can be scaled up on demand to meet airline and channel needs, offering flexibility and efficiency
  • Combined with highly automated cloud infrastructure, it copes with any search peak, which means airlines do not need to anticipate such peaks several months in advance.
  • Airline Cloud Availability was successfully piloted by Lufthansa in the second quarter of 2015, easily absorbing a 20-fold increase in transaction volumes.
  • This solution combines our airline industry expertise, along with Amadeus technology leadership to deploy a fully scalable remote instance of our content within the proven Google Cloud Platform. With the continuous proliferation of digital channels, this future-proof innovation has opened a new era in real-time merchandising.
  • elena_martynova on 27 Jan 17
     
    One of the 4 major GDS systems-Amadeus has begun offering a cloud service on the Google Compute infrastructure as a service platform to prevent overloading by internet requests. It helps to scale Amadeus service to support internet flight searches. The cloud-based system can help airlines to cope with the huge increase in search and consumer can receive 100% accurate results of the airline's availability.
elena_martynova

Go green - it's the only long-term option for your hotel business - eHotelier - 0 views

ehotelier.com/...ong-term-option-hotel-business

shared by elena_martynova on 20 Jan 17 - No Cached
  • Energy has been a major issue for hotels. While cloud-based technology has revolutionized the way properties manage operations such as the front desk, housekeeping, distribution and even marketing, not a lot has been happening in the power department.
  • Replacing all incandescent bulbs with LED-based lighting and using energy-efficient public devices like vending machines have helped lower  carbon footprints to an extent.
  • Adopting renewable sources of energy is a great way for companies to exhibit their commitment to ensuring longevity for their environment, and themselves, in turn.
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  • Connected devices could turn out to be a game-changer in this area. Almost every electronic can be replaced with its ‘connected’ counterpart – from lighting to HVAC systems. With each of these devices being assigned an independent IP address, they will be capable of communicating and interacting with one another. A single device detecting any form of human interaction – or the lack of it – can immediately prompt a multitude of other devices into taking an action, triggering a preordained chain of events.
  • Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) provide companies with the opportunity to minimize their carbon footprint by meeting more of their demands using clean energy.
  • “Technology companies want to know how much energy they use when they stay with us, and it does play a role in their decision,”
  • The biggest problem managers have faced has been managing electricity in unoccupied rooms, but with connected devices soon to come to every hotel room, properties will be able to control their power usage effectively for the first time.
  • initiatives such as installing dual-flush attachments and rain-water harvesting systems, managers can save this precious resource and lower their costs doing it.
  • Branding and packaging is another area where hotels can be more thrifty – using biodegradable or reusable shampoo and soap dispensers are eco-friendly alternatives to distributing individual sachets.
  • today, going green is no longer about forging an emotional connection with the audience, it’s the only logical option left for companies that want to secure their long term interests.
  • elena_martynova on 20 Jan 17
     
    The article points to the fact that energy is a major issue for hotels, which can be solved by going green and by implementing 3 energy-saving factors. 1. Using low energy devices and replacing all incandescent bulbs with LED-based lightning. 2. Adopting renewable source of energy. 3. Using connected devices, which make it possible for managers to monitor the power consumption. So today going green it's the long-term option for companies who want to save their prosperity.
elena_martynova

Why Cybersecurity in the Hotel Industry Should be a Joint Effort - 3 views

www.trustwave.com/...ustry-Should-be-a-Joint-Effort

shared by elena_martynova on 14 Jan 17 - No Cached
  • The global hospitality industry now sits in the top three of industries most frequently targeted by hackers, according to the 2015 Trustwave Global Security Report.
  • Thieves have seized the opportunity to capitalize on the wealth of data that passes through varying weak spots in hospitality networks, and they're now looking for more than just credit card data. Hotels hold contact details, travel plans, air miles, birth dates, passport data and personal preferences on millions of guests - all of which can be used by criminals in a multitude of ways, ranging from fraud to extortion.
  • According to the aforementioned report, 65 percent of the hospitality industry's security breaches were via point-of-sale (POS) systems, with weak remote access security contributing to 44 percent of those compromises.
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  • But a number of breaches also affecting the industry targeted booking partners - companies that facilitate reservations on behalf of the hotel brands for services such as air travel, car rental and room bookings.
  • Regardless of where the initial breach occurs, one thing is certain: if customers can't rely on a brand's booking system, they will simply go elsewhere. Statistics show that nearly one in five shoppers have dropped out of an online travel booking because of security concerns around payment.
  • Understanding where critical data lives within your enterprise and how it moves, both internally and outside of the organization, is paramount.
  • POS attackers often take advantage of vulnerabilities, from configuration errors like easy-to-guess passwords to underlying flaws in the system itself, to access payment terminals and plant malware.
  • it is critical that hotel chains - and their partners - have experts regularly conduct deep-dive penetration to sniff out potential vulnerabilities before criminals can take advantage of them.
  • To mitigate the potential damage caused by unidentified malware, hoteliers and their partners should implement intrusion detection, security management and threat intelligence services, as well as scan inbound and outbound communication to flag data-stealing malware in real time and prevent information from leaving the door
  • elena_martynova on 14 Jan 17
     
    This article tells us about the fact, that now days the global hospitality industry is one of the industries which is most frequently targeted by hackers. In order to avoid any attacks there must be tighter control across a hotel and its network of partners. So the main 3 aspects which will help to avoid attacks are: -assess risks everywhere -protect the POS system -find malware and keep data protected
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