Westin hotel's point-of-sale system possibly hacked
The Westin Bonaventure Hotel & Suites in Los Angeles recently revealed that hackers may have broken into its point-of-sale systems.How many victims? Unspecified.
What type of personal information? Names, credit or debit card numbers and card expiration dates
What happened? At some point between April and December 2009, the point-of-sale system for the hotel's four restaurants and valet parking service may have been illegally accessed by outside hackers. The intruders may have used this entry to obtain sensitive information
Details: The hackers did not obtain any information from the computer system used to store hotel guest information. In addition, the compromise did not affect any charges made to guests' rooms.
Quote: “We value our customers' privacy and deeply regret that this incident may have occurred,” the hotel wrote in a notification letter on its website.
What was the response? The hotel is working with law enforcement and forensic investigators. In addition, it has conducted a review of its computer systems to ensure a similar incident does not recur. The hotel is offering free credit-monitoring services for one year to affected individuals.
Source: Westin Bonaventure Hotel & Suite, “Data Security Notification,” Feb. 20, 2010.
