According to a 2011 Global Survey Report released by Trustwave SpiderLabs, one in ten of the data breaches that Trustwave investigated in 2010 happened in the hotel industry.  

Hotel Internet Security hacking that leads to credit fraud seems to be as easy and becoming increasingly common. Point of sale devices are vulnerable; there’s huge volume of credit card transactions; and credit card information is retained for reservations and loyalty programs.

Unsecured hotel wireless networks at hotels have also proven to be an ideal place for hackers to commit a variety of other crimes. In many states across the country, hackers staying at hotels or parked nearby have used the anonymity of hotel wireless networks to download illegal content.

Guests looking to use their hotel’s wireless Internet may face another security threat.  In 2010, The CBS Early Show had an ethical hacker set up a fake WiFi access point at a New York City hotel, calling it “Best Free Public WiFi.” Before long, dozens of unsuspecting wireless device users tried to log on. When an unsuspecting hotel guest connects to a rogue WiFi access point like that, his sensitive financial information can be harvested by a hacker.

Remember, staying at a nice hotel with good security doesn’t guarantee that your financial information will be safe from hackers.