Category Archives: Theft

by | May 4, 2011 · 6:58 pm

Hospitality Industry Guest Payment Risks: Hotel Management Must Confirm Credit Card Payments At Check-In

“…A man is accused of staying at a Midtown hotel for a week and not paying his bill….and has been charged with theft of service…”

“…The owner of La Maison told investigators that Aragon gave her a credit card that was declined…”

 According to court documents, Aragon stayed at the La Maison in Midtown bed and breakfast from March 14 through March 21 and did not pay for his hotel room. The owner of La Maison told investigators that Aragon gave her a credit card that was declined. When the owner questioned Aragon, he told her that he was having a house built and that the builder would be taking care of the bill. The owner alleges Aragon left the hotel without paying the $1,675 bill.

Investigators say Aragon told them the builder was supposed to pay the bill and that there was some misunderstanding about the bill. Aragon said he had placed a money order in the mail and that the owner should have received it in the mail. The owner told investigators that she never received payment.

For more:  http://abclocal.go.com/ktrk/story?section=news/local&id=8111479

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by | April 28, 2011 · 6:25 pm

Hospitality Industry Information Security Risks: Hotel Management Must "Encrypt All Confidential Guest Data" To Decrease "Public Exposure Of Data"

“…99% of businesses around the globe at present no longer store confidential information on their systems and 75% continuously complied with PCI requirements…”

“…encrypting confidential information will “shrink the card data environment,” thus a minimal to zero possibility of public exposure of these data…”

To prevent fraud, she proposed three ways for the card industry:

  • Widespread distribution of ‘smarter’ payment devices is one, where EVM (chip-and-pin) cards will be used
  • Smarter networks to stem the cyber crime before or when it happens
  • A cardholder authentication method such as two-factor authentication

“Visa’s global fraud rate recently hit a historic low – at just over 5 cents for every $100 transacted, down more than two-thirds from the levels of 20 years ago,” she added.

She urged the card industry to step up a bit more its security measures as most consumers believe cyber criminals are ahead of what’s already in place. According to Richey, 61% of consumers are of the opinion that the security measures of the card industry are one step behind cyber criminals.

Rather than keeping pace with cyber crime which would only exhaust resources, Richey proposed getting smarter as a better solution in combating fraud and protecting card data.

“We need to use all the intelligence we have at our disposal. I think that the opportunities to get smarter and fight fraud are all around us,” she said.

Richey, on the other hand, recognized the fact that these suggestions will be costly and will require tremendous resources.

For more:  http://inaudit.com/audit/it-audit/cyber-crime-vincible-through-smarter-technologies-visa-5856/

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by | April 20, 2011 · 6:37 am

Hospitality Industry Security Risks: "Extended-Stay" Hotels Can Be "Havens For Crime" Unless Extra Security Measures Are Implemented Including Use Of Off-Duty Police Officers And Criminal Record And Sex Offender Background Checks

Extended-stay hotels make up about 10 percent of the hotel industry, said Joe McInerney, president of the American Hotel and Lodging Association.

“…the list of crimes reported at a Value Place extended-stay hotel included prostitution, drug sales, methamphetimine manufacture, heroin use, drug overdoses, child pornography, theft and a rape.

“…City officials and hotel leaders met April 4 and hashed out an agreement…. The hotel agreed to employ an off-duty Arnold police officer 24 hours a day. The hotel already was checking to make sure potential guests weren’t sex offenders, but will now check for other criminal offenses, as well….”

City officials were fed up and threatened to revoke the hotel’s business license. But a recent agreement to curtail crime at the 124-unit hotel is working, authorities say.

“By word of mouth, one tells the other this is a place where you can set up shop and be unencumbered,” Unrein said. Police had been called to Value Place about 230 times since it opened, Unrein said. That’s more than triple the number of calls to the city’s three other hotels combined, he said.

Problems reached a head this month. The hotel is offering a free hotel room where an Arnold police officer can live and have allowed police dogs to roam the halls this month, said Gina-Lynne Smith, president of Value Place.

The chain has a hotel in St. Charles. Police get more calls for service at that hotel than others in town, but it’s certainly not a nuisance, said Sgt. Todd Wilson of the city’s police department.

The hotels are not popular everywhere. Subdivision residents in Oakand Park, Fla., launched a campaign to keep a Value Place from being built nearby. So far, they have succeeded.

Their guests range from those who can’t afford a lease to professionals away from home for a temporary job assignment or extended training.

Kell Stovall of Memphis, an estimator for a roofing company, said he is spending his third week at the Arnold Value Place. He plans to move to an apartment at the end of the month.

He considered staying elsewhere after hearing about the hotel’s history but opted not to leave because he hasn’t had any problems. He said police officers knock on his truck windows to check on him when he talks on his phone on the hotel’s lot.

For more:  http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/metro/article_76aae994-5d06-5e84-aaf6-5d7f13adc180.html

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by | April 18, 2011 · 6:21 pm

Hospitality Industry Guest Risks: Hotels From Hawaii to New York Have Employed Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) To Reduce Towel Theft

“…Linen Technology Tracking, a Miami-based company (has)  patented a washable Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) chip for hotels to sew into towels, robes and bed sheets…”

The chip can trigger an alarm if a guest tries to take a tagged item from the premises. The New York Times reports that three hotels in Honolulu, Manhattan and Miami have introduced the system but wish to remain unnamed.

William Serbin, the executive Vice President of Linen Technology Tracking tells the New York Times that high cotton prices led to costlier towels which served as motivation for developing an anti-theft system. He adds that the technology has a double purpose — in addition to catching thieves, it helps hotels monitor linen demand and adjust their supply accordingly.

It’s a successful system. The Honolulu hotel has saved nearly $15,000 since implementing the tags last summer and their monthly towel theft is now less than a quarter of what it was before. Can travelers hope for rapid rate reductions as a result? Probably not, but NewsFeed can dream.

Read more: http://newsfeed.time.com/2011/04/18/want-to-steal-a-hotel-towel-check-for-a-new-tracking-chip-first/#ixzz1JvjQgc7I

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by | April 3, 2011 · 4:02 pm

Hotel Industry Security Risks: Georgia Hotel Security Guard Shoots And Kills Armed Robbery Suspect After Chase Through Hotel

The shooting happened around 2:30 a.m. on a property adjacent to the Quality Inn Suites on Old National Highway, according to the College Park Police Department.

A security guard chased down an armed robber and killed him early Friday outside a hotel in College Park. Kadeesh Comer, 21, had just robbed a clerk at the hotel, and a security guard chased him outside the hotel, police said.

Comer shot at the guard with a 0.22-cal revolver, and the guard returned fire, killing him, police said. No charges were filed against the guard. Hotel owner Ramesh Bhagat told Channel 2 Action News that the clerk handed over $150, but that it wasn’t enough for the robber.

“He asked for more money, but we said ‘We don’t have more money,’ because we do all business by credit card,” Bhagat told the news station. The security guard noticed the commotion and intervened.

For more:  http://www.ajc.com/news/atlanta/police-hotel-guard-shoots-895131.html

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by | March 23, 2011 · 12:26 pm

Hotel Industry Information Security Risks: California Hotel Employees Union Files Suit Over Identification Cards "Encoded With Social Security Numbers"

Disney hotel union members submitted Tuesday a petition with about 1,400 signatures to managers, seeking changes to their employee cards that they say would protect them against identity theft.

Unite Here Local 11, the union that represents about 2,100 hotel workers, is fighting to change identification cards that have encoded Social Security numbers, which can be read by smartphone apps and other devices.

Already last month, the union filed a federal class action lawsuit, claiming that the cards violate state law. Union members collected signatures to emphasize that the majority of hotel workers want an immediate change to their ID cards, rather than a few listed on the lawsuit. Leigh Shelton, a union spokeswoman, said some other unions also are supporting the cause, but they did not participate in this petition.

About 20 workers took their petition to the Disney administration building in Anaheim on Tuesday morning.

“This is a very serious problem that we hope they resolve immediately,” said Eddie Chavez, a union organizer and Disneyland Hotel bellman.

For more:  http://www.ocregister.com/news/-293152–.html

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by | March 17, 2011 · 6:27 pm

Hotel Industry Credit Card Security: "Cyber Criminals" Steal Credit Card Data On Hotel Computer Systems That Lack Critical Firewalls

Cyber criminals are systematically attacking systems that store credit card data, including Point-of-Sale and Property Management Systems. The criminal organizations are highly structured and integrated with the world’s organized crime rings.

Detailed forensic analysis by law enforcement agencies and specialized private-sector security practices, as well as by security departments at major hotel groups around the world, leave little doubt that the attacks on hotels are highly targeted and effective.

Many hoteliers believe they are not vulnerable because they use Point-of-Sale and Property Management Systems that have been validated as conforming to the latest PCI security standards. Unfortunately this is far from the case. Even such validated systems can be vulnerable if the hotel operates them in an unsecured manner. Leading forensics firms agree that the most important security measures are those that keep cyber criminals from getting inside the hotel network in the first place. Once inside, there are many ways for them to steal the data, even if the PMS or POS system itself is secure.

  • Eliminate EVERY default password on EVERY machine on your network – server, workstation, router, firewall, and any other device that has a password. The most important machines to check are the ones you think are NOT vulnerable, such as a PC on an engineer’s desk for monitoring building systems, or the PC in the parking garage attendant’s office, or the one in a closet running your keycard system.
  • Eliminate holes in remote access to systems inside your network. Remote access by vendors is an essential part of support for many hotel systems. The data thieves know this, and they know how to use it to get inside your network. They know all the default passwords, and they have even been known to steal master customer lists, complete with current passwords, from vendors.
  • If you were to store stacks of money in plain sight in an exit stairwell, you would expect to be robbed. Operating without an Internet firewall is just as risky. Yet many hotels, especially smaller ones, don’t have a firewall. If you are connected to the Internet without one, then people you don’t know, from around the world and many with malicious intent, are reaching into your network.

For more:  http://www.traveldailynews.com/pages/show_page/42199-Hotel-associations-issue-joint-statement-on-credit-card-security

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by | March 10, 2011 · 7:33 pm

Hospitality Industry Information Security Risks: "Electronic Pickpocketing" Allows Criminals To Steal Credit And Debit Cards Containing RFID Technology

“…criminals can steal credit cards, debit cards, passports and other valuable information…This crime is referred to as “electronic pickpocketing”.  The technology used to perform this type of theft is called radio frequency identification or “RFID”….

Hundreds of millions of credit cards, debit cards and all passports issued since 2006 are embedded with a radio frequency identification chip—or RFID.  RFID chips are also commonly used in hotel keys, cards that raise gates in parking garages and unlock doors at businesses.  Government, military and port of entry ID cards are also vulnerable to this type of theft.  You need only swipe the card in front of a reader.  The RFID chip is always on, making consumers more susceptible to identity theft. 

Thieves can steal this information by using a frequency reader.  These readers are inexpensive and easy to obtain.  The thief can simply walk next to you and acquire your credit card number and expiration date without any physical contact. While these cards are in your wallet or purse they can transmit your card or passport number and in some states, your digital drivers’ license information when placed near a reader.  The information almost immediately appears on a computer screen without you ever knowing about it.  Apparently U.S. passports are more difficult to read than cards with RFID chips because they require a password.  However, hackers with enough knowledge can see everything on the passport’s front page.   A thief can be long gone before the consumer ever realizes his information has been stolen.  This is “electronic pickpocketing”.

For more: http://www.ktnv.com/story/14225766/consumers-beware-of-electronic-pickpocketing

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by | March 9, 2011 · 6:26 am

Hospitality Industry Guest Parking Risks: Keys Stolen From "Unattended" Valet Box At Atlanta Restaurant Result In 2 Stolen Cars And Personal Property

 Several sets of car’s keys were taken from an unlocked and unattended valet box near the trendy diner. Another car owner had his 2010 Audi stolen.

The owner of the valet company, Pro Park, said his insurance will cover costs of the stolen cars and replacing all the victims’ keys. 

  ‘It’s pretty brazen to go after them in the view of everyone.’

At a restaurant in Atlanta where a thief took car keys from an unlocked valet box and drove off with a Mercedes which had the ashes of the owner's dead father inside

 

A thief drove off with a car which had the ashes of the owner’s dead father inside the vehicle. Michael Doane’s father died the week before in a car accident and he had planned on scattering the ashes the next day with his family.

The 45-year-old’s Mercedes was parked right in front of  Murphy’s Restaurant in Atlanta’s Virginia Highland area when the cheeky thief struck. Madison Burnett told WSB-TV: ‘It’s pretty brazen to go after them in the view of everyone.’

Restaurant owner Tom Murphy said: ‘This is a tragic situation where a valet company who we subcontracted made a horrific mistake.

‘It is just heartbreaking that this occurred and our prayers go out to this family.  Hopefully the media recognition will greatly assist on the car being found as soon as possible.’

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1359936/Thief-drives-ashes-car-owners-dead-father.html#ixzz1G70BlETl

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by | March 4, 2011 · 8:32 am

Hospitality Industry Employee Theft: Delaware Hotel Accounting Manager Arrested For Cash Thefts And Falsifying Business Records

Detectives with the Division of Gaming Enforcement arrested 53-year-old Andrew McCoy of Smyrna on Tuesday. He is charged with theft and falsifying business records.

  • An employee theft is any intentional misappropriation of employer property, e.g., inventory, fixed assets, currency checks, or trade secrets.
  • It can include fraud (intentionally misleading the employer), embezzlement (theft of corporate funds) or forgery (altered negotiable instruments).
  • It can be as straightforward as a theft of petty cash or as complex as a misappropriation scheme detectable only in an audit.
  • It can be the isolated act of a single low-level employee or a complex scheme involving a trusted senior employee.

Authorities say the former director of hotel accounting at Dover Downs has been arrested in connection with cash thefts from the hotel. Dover Downs CEO Denis McGlynn tells The News Journal of Wilmington that McCoy was fired in February after evidence was found of internal thefts. McGlynn says the thefts, believed to have totaled between $20,000 and $25,000, involved small cash transactions.

For more:  http://www.therepublic.com/view/story/ac67083ec0e54c05a592be7577a39914/DE–Dover_Downs-Theft/#

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