Sun, Sand and Cyber: Does the Hospitality Industry Need to Invest in Cybersecurity Now?... - 0 views
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To ensure businesses are in the best possible position to compete during and long after the Coronavirus pandemic is over, both customers and employees need to be educated on the security measures on offer to feel comforted in this brave new business climate.
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For businesses to feel empowered against today’s many challenges, a consistent approach to risk management is absolutely crucial. A CISO with the authority to carry out real change and impart strong governance across the business would be hugely valuable.
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These burdens come into sharper focus when you consider the digital environment in which hotels are operating. Individual hotels are often connected to the organization’s national or international network, meaning only one hotel has to be breached before the entire company is at risk of hemorrhaging huge volumes of its data.
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Most crucially, a cybersecurity strategy must include a solid plan for Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery in order to prepare for any worst-case scenarios. In the era of COVID-19, incidents of the worst kind are fast emerging and businesses deserve a fighting chance to succeed.
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The root of this cyber crisis lies in the way hotels are hampered by disparate legacy systems and out-of-date software where breaches are rife for the taking, particularly on hotels’ Point of Sale (POS) systems and other external vendors. Adding to this, hotels often outsource their customer IT connectivity but unfortunately forget to consistently monitor and audit suppliers’ security measures.
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Today, the systems used for various functions in a hotel’s back and front operations are manned by employees who are not yet well-equipped to pick up on and counter large-scale cyber-attacks until it’s too late.
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Mobile phones, tables and laptops connected to open networks become a hunting ground for hackers to harvest banking details through card payments.
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Worth billions of pounds, the hospitality industry is a perfect victim for cyber-criminals. Its make-up of luxury resorts and hotels alongside huge volumes of high net-worth individuals has fast become prey for hacker
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While financial services and the public sector have been forced to endure an endless stream of cybercrime, the hospitality industry has also become a prime contender for hackers in the wake of its rich data-base.
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No matter the size of the business, inefficient cyber support diverts crucial time from business activities and relationships with customers.
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With global business fighting relentlessly to survive against the chaotic threat of the Coronavirus, all industries are exposed to criminal cyber-threats, and so the security of highly sensitive data must be handled appropriately.
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British Airways and Marriott International are two major hospitality companies to be victims of high-profile breaches in recent memory. They serve as a stark reminder of the heavy costs faced when the safety of customers’ data is compromised.