[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=udcZjs9_g80]
NBC Security Consultant shows how criminals can use hotel staff to break into a hotel room.
Category Archives: Crime
Hospitality Industry Security Risks: NBC Security Consultant Demonstrates How Criminals Can Use Hotel Staff To Break Into Hotel Rooms (Video)
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Hospitality Industry Information Security: Hotel Chain Computer System Hacked By Man Who Threatened To Reveal Confidential Information If He Was Not Hired For IT Position
“…an infected email attachment (was) sent to some Marriott employees to install malicious software on the company’s system that gave him a “backdoor” access to proprietary email and other files…”
“…Nemeth sent an email to Marriott staff on November 11 last year, informing them that he had been accessing Marriott’s computers for months and had obtained proprietary information… He threatened to reveal the information if Marriott did not give him a job maintaining the company’s computers…”
A Hungarian citizen has pleaded guilty to stealing confidential information from the computers of Marriott International, and threatening to reveal the information if the hotel chain did not offer him a job maintaining the company’s computers, the Department of Justice said.
Attila Nemeth, 26, pleaded guilty in a US court, according to a statement by DOJ. He was detained after he travelled to the states on a ticket purchased by Marriott for a fictitious job interview.
As he had not received a response from Marriott, Nemeth sent another mail on November 13 containing eight attachments, seven of which were documents stored on Marriott’s computers. The documents included financial documentation and other confidential and proprietary information, the DOJ said.
A US Secret Service agent, using the identity of a fictitious employee of Marriott, communicated with Nemeth on November 18, who continued to call and email the undercover agent demanding a job to prevent the public release of the documents, according to the plea agreement. Nemeth emailed a copy of his Hungarian passport as identification and offered to travel to America, according to the DOJ.
For more:Â http://news.techworld.com/security/3320672/marriott-hotel-chain-hacked-by-disgruntled-job-seeker/
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Hospitality Industry Employee Risks: 61-Year Old California Hotel Housekeeper Arrested For Theft While Cleaning Guest Rooms
“…while she was cleaning she was seen taking a woman’s watch and hide it in the room… she was seen entering the room again and retrieve the watch, conceal it upon her person, and leave the room. It was then the trap 
was sprung and she was detained by security, who also took the watch back from her…”
“…officers arrested this 61-year-old cleaner from Los Angeles, and she was charged with burglary. Her bail was set at $50,000…”
On Friday, Nov. 11, at 12:55 p.m. officers of the Santa Monica Police Department went to the Fairmont Hotel, located at 101 Wilshire Boulevard, in order to investigate a report of a suspect who was being held at the hotel by their security chief in regard to some allegations of theft. When the officers arrived at the scene they spoke with the Director of Security who told them the detainee was an employee of the hotel.
He said there had been a number of thefts from the hotel rooms reported, and that the person, who was a cleaner at the Fairmont, had become the prime suspect. On the day prior to the officers being called the hotel, security had prepared a room with several items in order to make the room appear occupied by a guest. They had then placed a hidden camera inside the room.
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Hospitality Industry Employee Risks: South Carolina Hotel Maintenance Worker Arrested On Sexual Assault Charges For "Grabbing And Touching" Housekeeper "Inappropriately"
“…The victim…had been cleaning a room when one of the maintenance workers.. entered the room to help her flip a mattress…he walked up to her and began grabbing her breasts and touching her inappropriately…”
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“…Dooley left but then allegedly returned 10 to 15 minutes later and reportedly exposed his genitals to the victim, touching himself…”A Myrtle Beach man is behind bars after allegedly grabbing a co-worker inappropriately and causing her to be fearful of her safety a couple of weeks ago.
According to a police report, Myrtle Beach Police responded to a hotel in the 2700 block of N. Ocean Highway Saturday afternoon in reference to an assault that had taken place on Nov. 9.
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She said she pushed Dooley off of her and told him to stop, and said they would both be fired if anyone saw his behavior. The victim also told police she told him not to touch her like that and told him to leave the room.
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Dooley left but then allegedly returned 10 to 15 minutes later and reportedly exposed his genitals to the victim, touching himself.
The victim told police Dooley said things like “I am hanging to be a white boy” and “I love black Oreos” to her and she became afraid of him, scared he was going to attack her.
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She then went to the head of housekeeping to tell her about what happened and the incident was reported to the hotel’s general manager. According to the victim, Dooley was then suspended from work.
Sunday, officers arrested Dooley and charged him with assault and battery in the second degree as well as indecent exposure.
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Hospitality Industry Employee Risks: Police Arrest New York Restaurant Waiters Who Were "Equipped With Electronic Skimmers" To Steal Credit Card Information
“… the crooks equipped waiters at Smith & Wollensky, The Capital Grille, Wolfgang’s Steakhouse and JoJo — and at two restaurants outside the city — with electronic skimmers to steal the info from at least 50 customers…”
Waiters at some of New York’s swankiest eateries were part of a criminal crew that stole credit card information to create counterfeit cards — and then racked up some $600,000 in purchases, prosecutors revealed Friday.
Then Jacas used a “network of shoppers†to go on shopping sprees at high-end Manhattan stores like Chanel, Neiman Marcus, Cartier, Hermes of Paris, Bloomingdales, Bergdorf Goodman, Waldmann’s, London Jewelers, Burberry, Jimmy Choo, Lord & Taylor, prosecutors said.
One of them was Gregory Portacio, who infamously dragged a Queens mom to her death in 1980 by grabbing her neck chain and hanging on while an accomplice drove their getaway car down a block.
“Anybody who thinks credit card fraud brings out high class criminals should think again,†said Police Commissioner Ray Kelly, whose men were still searching for the 51-year-old career criminal and sex offender.
The crooks even used the phony American Express cards to refuel at Starbucks and also hit stores in Westchester County, Long Island, Boston, Chicago and Florida.
The ill-gotten goods were then fenced to “complicit customers†for cash, prosecutors said.
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Hospitality Industry Guest Safety: Hotel Management Must Have "Guest Privacy" Policies To Protect Names And Room Locations
“…Privacy is key when it comes to safety in a hotel, most importantly at check-in…”
“If the person giving you your key says your name out loud or your room number, you want to be sure to get
another key and another room, because anyone lingering in the lobby could overhear that.”
- Female travelers should “never put down your name. Just put down your initials and never indicate you’re just one person.”
Greg O’Neill, who heads up security at Boston’s Mandarin Oriental, says security measures generally work, when guests use them:
- …Â take advantage the in-room safe. You’ll find this in most every hotel
- …take advantage of the peephole in the door, and be aware of the nearest exit
Here’s another tip: check crime statistics for particular neighborhoods before making a hotel reservation. Most police web sites will have those details.
Security experts also suggest taking your room key out of the little envelope they give you at check-in, because it usually has your room number on it.
For more:Â http://www.14news.com/story/16068750/experts-providing-hotel-safety-tips-around-the-holidays
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Hospitality Industry Internet Risks: Recent Studies Show Dramatic Increases "Mobile Space Cybercrime" As Criminals Focus On Smartphones And Tablets
“…The usage of Internet through mobile phone had been on a rapid upward trend. This led to 42 per cent more mobile vulnerabilities last year compared to the year before, as shown in a Symantec Internet Security Threat Report…”
“…cybercriminals were starting to focus their efforts on the mobile space as more and more mobile users switched to smartphones and tablets instead of the conventional desktops…”
A recent worldwide study conducted by Norton by Symantec aimed at unveiling the cost of global crime, has concluded that online adults footed a bill of over US$388 billion in the past year.
According to Symantec Corporation Sdn Bhd consumer sales manager Jason Mok, the price tag came to be as the study took into account not only the direct cash cost of cybercrime – that being the money stolen by cybercrime and money spent on resolving cyber-attacks – which was up to US$114 billion, but also the amount which victims of cybercrime valued the time they lost to cybercrime, which was US$274 billion.
“The Norton Cybercrime Report 2011 found that more than two thirds of online adults have been a victim of cybercrime in their lifetime. Every second, 14 adults become a victim of cybercrime, resulting in more than one million cybercrime victims per day,†stated Mok, who also pointed out that the rate was higher than the worldwide birth rate.
Mok marked this as a sign that cybercriminals were starting to focus their efforts on the mobile space as more and more mobile users switched to smartphones and tablets instead of the conventional desktops.
“This had led to an increasing importance of mobile security, as you are not only losing your phone or tablet, you are losing your personal information, identity as well as your money,†Mok informed the crowd during a media briefing held at a hotel here yesterday.
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Hospitality Industry Theft Risks: Suspect In California Hotel Guest Room Burglaries Arrested After Successful Surveillances; Entered Rooms Through Patio Sliding Door
After the string of burglaries, the Palms Springs Police Department started conducting surveillances outside 
the hotel, and it was during one of those surveillances that they found the suspect.
The general manager of the Desert Riviera says to look for a hotel where staff seems involved and aware.
Police saw Christopher Thompson climbing into the outside patio area of a hotel room. He got into the room through a sliding glass door. Tourists we talked with were surprised to hear about the crime, but always take steps to keep their belongings safe when they travel.
Block says there are also some simple steps you can take to make sure you don’t become a victim of a crime when you travel.
- Lock not just the front door but the back sliding glass door as well
- Take valuables with you
- Choose a hotel where the parking area looks lit and safe
- Always lock your car
- Spend time researching the hotel
For more:Â http://www.kesq.com/news/29769831/detail.html
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Hospitality Inudustry Employment Risks: Woman At Florida Staffing Company Convicted Of "Alien Smuggling And Worker Visa Fraud" In Supplying Workers To Hotels
 “…a large temporary labor staffing company based in Orlando, which supplied temporary labor to numerous businesses in the hotel and hospitality industries throughout Florida and the United States…”
“…Â They also submitted fake hotel contract agreements to conceal their activities and falsely reported that U.S. workers had been hired when they had not…”
A federal jury found a Brazilian woman residing in Orlando guilty of alien smuggling and conspiracy to commit alien smuggling and worker visa fraud on Monday, following an investigation that began with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).
Rafaela Dutra Toro, 30, faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison. She was indicted on Jan. 26. Her sentencing hearing has not yet been scheduled.
 “The individuals involved in this case orchestrated a very large and very complex visa fraud ring. They took jobs away from U.S. citizens and others who are legally allowed to work in this country by knowingly employing people who were not authorized to work in the United States,” said Susan McCormick, special agent in charge of HSI in Tampa. “Through cases like this one, HSI is helping to protect our economy and preserve job opportunities from being lost due to fraud.”
Toro is a citizen of Brazil and will be subject to removal from the United States after serving her sentence. According to evidence presented at trial, Toro worked for VR Services, a large temporary labor staffing company based in Orlando, which supplied temporary labor to numerous businesses in the hotel and hospitality industries throughout Florida and the United States. The scheme allowed Toro and her co-conspirators to set up a permanent foreign labor pool that hired illegal alien workers across the United States in jobs that would normally have been filled by United States citizens. As part of the conspiracy, Toro and her co-conspirators submitted false documentation to the government and manipulated the H-2B foreign worker visa process. They also submitted fake hotel contract agreements to conceal their activities and falsely reported that U.S. workers had been hired when they had not.
For more:Â http://www.laht.com/article.asp?ArticleId=443603&CategoryId=14090
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Hospitality Industry Internet Risks: Connecticut Hotel Employees Assist Authorities In Arrest And Conviction Of Man For "Child Pornography" While Using Hotel Internet
Employees at the Marriott Hotel in Hartford, Conn., took action over the summer when they spotted a man trying to access a pornographic website in their hotel, the Hartford Courant reports.
They banned the man from the hotel, and then alerted authorities, leading to an investigation by agencies including the Hartford Police, FBI and the Connecticut Computer Crimes Task Force.
That investigation on Tuesday led to a guilty plea from the suspect who had been using Internet services almost daily at a variety of places including the hotel’s Starbucks Café and the nearby library, the article says.
He had previously been convicted of attempted child molestation, according to the FBI.
William Scott Van Wyk, 35, pleaded guilty in Hartford before U.S. District Judge Christopher Droney to a child pornography charge and one count of using the Internet to try to persuade a minor to engage in sexual activity, the story says.
He faces at least 15 years in prison, although he may receive a longer sentence due to his record.
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