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Data Whistleblower Booking.com

Whistleblower lifts lid on scam targeting thousands of Booking.com customers

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By Jessica Davies | News Editor

December 20, 2014 | 2 min read

A Whistleblower has reportedly unveiled how stolen personal data was used to cheat thousands of customers of hotel booking site Booking.com.

According to the BBC the whistleblower was hired by an international freelance telesales website. He contacted BBC Radio 4’s Money Box and revealed he was offered $12 an hour for the work and spent 12 days in the job, which he did form home via his laptop.

He was furnished with lists of Booking.com customers, many of whom were foreign visitors comsing from countries like India and China, and said he was able to call around 250 a day, according to the BBC.

The scam would involve the man, who requested to stay anonymous, calling customers and impersonating staff from hotels they had booked into on Booking.com. He would then send a follow-up email requesting payment.

Booking.com has estimated that approximately 10,000 people would have been affected by the fraudulent activity, which saw some of them part with payment only to arrive at their hotel and find there was no official record of their booking.

The initial activity was reported several weeks ago, but it is only now that the details as to how and by who the attack was carried out, that has come to light.

A Booking.com spokesperson responded to The Drum saying it has been working with its customers and the police to ensure the impact has been "as minimal as possible".

"We also said this was no data breach and that phishing is an industry wide phenomenon that we now have been confronted with like other e-commerce companies in the past.

"We have immediately stepped up our security measures and will continue to counter these criminal activities and to make sure booking accommodations via Booking.com is safe," he said.

Data Whistleblower Booking.com

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