Heimdal Security researchers spotted fraudsters sending phishing emails under the guise of blank Delta Airlines’ ticket confirmations. The victims receive an email purportedly from Delta stating that the user’s ticket order has been confirmed using their credit card, however the email does not contain any further details about the flight. However, it does contain links […]
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Bogus travel agent jailed for two years
A bogus travel agent has been jailed for two years after conning families out of £130,000 by pretending she’d booked them holidays. Susan Lee, of Leaze Park, Okehampton, targeted friends, customers and strangers who came into her sweet and toy shop, The Emporium, in the Devon town. Exeter Crown Court heard she told them ‘a […]
British tourists’ fake poisoning scam
The Spanish tourism industry is up in arms at the booming popularity of a scam which has seen British holidaymakers apparently fake illness in order to claim hefty compensation packages from hotels. Industry sources have warned that increasing numbers of Britons are using the hoax, which involves complaining that a meal in the hotel where […]
Hackers stole credit card data
The hotel chain that owns Holiday Inn, Crowne Plaza, InterContinental and other brands said credit card information of their guests may have been stolen last year at thousands of locations, including more than 100 in Canada. British-based InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) said it is aware of “unauthorized charges occurring on payment cards after they were […]
IHG warns of second payment card data breach
InterContinental Hotels Group has issued a warning to customers over a second payment card data breach, which happened in late 2016. The latest breach occurred for transactions made between September 29, 2016 and December 29, 2016 and the company says there is no evidence any cards were compromised after this date. This breach affects more […]
We need a cure for bogus sickness claims
Bogus whiplash claims adding sizeable sums to all of our car insurance policies have come to the fore in the press over the years, and thankfully a clampdown on claims management companies (CMCs) and a capping of the legal fees they can charge have curtailed it. However, a legal loophole means overseas cases are excluded […]
False travel insurance claims
Insurance claims investigators are reporting a rise in holidaymakers lying about the circumstances of their claims to increase their chances of having them paid. The Special Investigations Unit of claims and assistance providers CEGA said customers who have had their claims refused are then changing their stories in a bid to get the claim paid. […]
Lawyers face investigation over illicit fees
Lawyers are allegedly paying illicit referral fees to claims management companies for access to clients who say that they have contracted stomach bugs and other ailments while on package holidays. At least 15 law firms are reported to be facing investigation for their potential role in a holiday illness scam that is costing the travel […]
Holiday villa scam
Holidaymakers should be wary of booking trips on unknown websites amid fears they could be scammed. Money Mail revealed in January that fraudsters had set up fake websites to trick British holidaymakers out of tens of thousands of pounds. Now a remarkably similar new site – Canaries-holidays.com – has been launched. Scamadviser.com, which checks for […]
Abta data breach is bad publicity
Abta revealed a cyber breach and theft of data of 650 members and 43,000 customers last week, but insisted “the vast majority” was “at low risk” of identity theft or online fraud. The association acted promptly and has been contacting all those affected, with an expert saying Abta acted “extremely well”. However, travel fraud expert […]
ABTA steps in to resolve holiday sickness claims
ABTA has launched a new, independent alternative dispute resolution (ADR) scheme for personal injury, including holiday sickness claims. It claimed the conciliation service is a ‘simple and cost effective means for members and consumers to resolve claims up to £10,000. ABTA said the independent ADR scheme offered travel companies and holidaymakers a means of resolving […]
How travel fraud culture is on the rise
According to the latest statistics from Abta, the sector has seen a 425% rise in fraudulent bookings, costing the consumer an estimated £11.5m last year. As we have seen from yesterday’s news, organisations like Abta can also be the victims, highlighting the importance of future-proofing against these attacks. It is not just the general public […]
New Cifas data reveals 173,000 cases recorded in 2016
Cifas, the UK’s fraud prevention service, has released new figures showing that identity fraud has hit the highest levels ever recorded. A record high of 172,919 identity frauds were recorded in 2016 more than in any other previous year. Identity fraud now represents over half of all fraud recorded by the UK’s not-for-profit fraud data […]
Marriott Hotel warn people about fake phone scam
Think you’ve won an all-expenses paid hotel stay at a premium brand? Not so fast. If you receive a phone call offering a free stay at a Marriot hotel, you might just want to hang up immediately. According to the hotel chain, that call is likely part of a continuing phone scam that utilizes the […]
Abta cyber attack
Thousands of holidaymakers are said to be at risk of fraud after having their personal details stolen in a cyber attack on Abta, Britain’s leading travel association. Here is what to do if you think you might be affected. Who’s affected? As many as 43,000 people were affected by the hack, with email addresses, passwords […]
Companies need to take the lead in policing scam websites
Travel scams hit the headlines when two bogus villa rental sites were shut down by police after they were reported to Action Fraud. The sites had been accused of scraping real images and copy from legitimate operators’ websites and setting up a Google pay-per-click service to lure in customers. Most significantly, when the owner of […]
Scam villa sites closed down
The founder of Villa Plus has helped close down two fake holiday villa sites and has warned the public to be wary. Nick Cooper, founder and co-owner of Villa Plus, contacted police after discovering properties were being advertised without owners’ knowledge or consent. He warns there has been a big rise in the number of […]
Cruise operator sentenced to jail
Bret Gordon was sentenced last week in the U.S. District Court in Boston to 46 months in prison and ordered to pay $2.9 million for defrauding hundreds of customers of the now-defunct river cruise reselling operation Tom Harper Cruises, the company he established in 2013. Between September 2013 and June 2015, Gordon took about $2.3 […]
InterContinental Hotels Group at risk of fraud?
On December 28, 2016, InterContinental Hotels Group (IGH) announced it would conduct investigations after receiving a report of unauthorised charges that had occurred on some payment cards in a number of its U.S. hotel properties, Travel Agent Central has reported. Upon receiving information of the first compromised card, IHG hired leading cyber security firms to […]
Ibiza holiday turned out to be a scam
A group of friends have been left devastated and thousands of pounds out of pocket when their dream £4,000 Ibiza holiday turned out to be a scam. Alexandria Broad-Surry, 22, had booked a week’s getaway to the popular holiday destination with nine close friends after finding the perfect property online. She visited the website homeaway.com, […]