Images and logos on travel websites can be scammed ‘within seconds’ by cybercriminals intent on replicating a business online for fraudulent purposes. Most pictures online tend to be ‘unprotected’ and are therefore vulnerable to cybercrime, digital image specialists have warned in the third part of anti-fraud group Profit’s Secure Our Systems campaign, backed by Travel […]
Category: Latest Fraud News
Radisson loyalty program suffers data breach
An attacker gained access to Radisson Rewards members’ names, physical and email addresses but credit card and password data were not exposed. The Radisson hotel chain is notifying customers of a data breach after members of its Radisson Rewards program were compromised in a security incident. Radisson Rewards first detected the breach on Oct. 1 […]
Four convicted over fake holiday sickness claim
A family of fraudsters who faked sickness while on holiday, including feigning their children’s illness, have been convicted of contempt of court. Michael Jameson, 43, Claire Weir, 35, Jane Weir, 38, and Janet Weir, 63, of Liverpool made fraudulent sickness claims against Jet2holidays – asking for more than £45,000 in compensation and solicitors’ costs. But […]
Eurostar customer accounts hacked in data breach
Eurostar customers’ login passwords have been re-set after it detected attempts to break into an unspecified number of accounts. The high speed Channel Tunnel rail service said it had notified those whose accounts had been targeted. Other passengers will be told they have been blocked the next time they try to log in and will […]
Agency owners prosecuted in multi-million pound Hajj fraud
Three men behind a travel firm have been prosecuted for a multi-million pound fraud where they falsely claimed to be licensed to sell package trips to Mecca for the Hajj pilgrimage. Leicester-based Al Shafqat Hajj fraudulently used stationary containing the symbols of both Atol and Iata in its business specialising in selling trips to the […]
Former agent Rita Hunter charged with nine counts of fraud
Travel agent Rita Hunter is due to appear at Liverpool Magistrates Court this morning charged with nine new counts of fraud. The alleged fraud relates to flights and accommodation booked for clients which were not supplied or paid for. Hunter was arrested on Tuesday and subsequently charged with nine counts of fraud by false representation […]
Firms urged to spend more on tech to stop cyberattacks
Travel companies need to “significantly” increase spend on up-to-date technology and “do the basics” to protect themselves from cyberattacks. This could mean investing 1%-5% of operating revenue on technology, according to experts from Cribb Cyber Security. The current average for travel companies is less than 1%. In the second part of anti-fraud group Profit’s Secure […]
Travel agent boss, jailed after covering up £380k fraud
A travel agent has been jailed amid claims he tried up to cover up a £380,000 fraud involving his crashed Birmingham firm. Most of the cash was owed to a single creditor of Sunil Kumar Ralhan’s company, Travelogue Ltd. The 37-year-old was the sole director of the firm, which was liquidated in May 2015 after […]
BA says a further 185k cards possibly hit in cyber attack
International Airlines Group (ICAG.L) said an investigation into the theft of customers’ data at its British Airways unit showed hackers may have stolen the personal information of a further 185,000 customers. British Airways apologised in September after the credit card details of hundreds of thousands of its customers were stolen over a two-week period in […]
Cathay Pacific reveals major data hack
The personal data of up to 9.4 million Cathay Pacific passengers has been accessed in the latest security breach to hit the aviation industry. The Hong Kong-based carrier revealed that “unauthorised access” had been obtained to some of its i formation system. Passport numbers, email addresses and 403 expired credit card details were among the […]
Travel agent Rita Hunter remanded in custody
Travel agent Rita Hunter has been remanded in custody after appearing in court on nine fraud charges. The former homeworker appeared at Liverpool Magistrates Court on Wednesday after being arrested by police on Tuesday. Hunter is accused of booking holidays for clients which later turned out to be bogus. Victims claim they handed over thousands […]
Travel staff are the weakest link in cybersecurity
Travel industry staff are the “weakest link” in the fight against cybercrime, a security expert has warned. Cyber consultant Bruce Wynn said cybercrime attacks risked bringing down entire businesses. He was speaking at the launch of anti-fraud group Profit’s Secure Our Systems campaign, backed by Travel Weekly. Wynn, who has 40 years’ cybersecurity experience and […]
Former Tui manager handed 2 year suspended sentence
Former Tui senior manager Karen Doyle has been handed a two-year suspended jail sentence after stealing more than £63,000 worth of gift vouchers to pay for her own holidays. Doyle was sentenced today at Luton Crown Court after pleading guilty to fraud during an earlier hearing this month. She was sentenced to two years in […]
Travel insurance fraud to be highlighted in TV documentary
More than a million viewers are expected to watch BBC1’s Claimed and Shamed probe into travel insurance fraud today. CEGA Special Investigations will feature in series ten of the show at 11am on Thursday. Head of technical claims Simon Cook, a regular contributor to the programme, will educate viewers about the severity of submitting fraudulent […]
UK trade praised for action against fake sickness claims
The UK ambassador to Spain has praised the UK travel industry for co-operating to help stamp out bogus gastric illness complaints by British holidaymakers. The issue tarnished the reputation of British tourists to the country, Simon Manley told the Abta Travel Convention in Seville. However, action to abolish false illness claims in a country that […]
Former Tui manager Karen Doyle pleads guilty to fraud
Former Tui senior manager Karen Doyle has pleaded guilty to fraud after stealing more than £63,000 worth of gift vouchers over seven years while at the travel giant. Doyle, who was Marella Cruises general manager of supplier management and ancillary revenue, left Tui in May after working for the company for nine years in various […]
SOS campaign launches to fight travel cybercrime
A new industry-wide campaign aims to combat the growing menace of cybercrime against travel companies. Secure Our Systems, spearheaded by Prevention of Fraud in Travel (Profit), will be the first campaign of its kind in the trade. It comes just ahead of the launch of an industry ‘blacklist’ of known travel fraudsters, part of new […]
Cyber attack at Bristol Airport
Bristol Airport has blamed a ‘speculative’ cyber attack for the failure of its flight display screens over two days. Although the airport said there was no disruption to flights, some passengers complained on social media of baggage delays and lack of communication. Extra staff were drafted in and had to resort to writing flight times […]
Police in Europe Tie Card Fraud to People-Smuggling Gang
Coordinated police raids in Germany and Sweden have resulted in the arrest of two individuals suspected of running a cyber fraud gang that used stolen payment card data to book hundreds of airline and train tickets to help smuggle people from the Middle East into Europe. The EU’s law enforcement intelligence agency Europol, which helped […]
Cold calling ban to reduce fake holiday sickness claims
Abta predicts the government ban on cold calls will reduce the number of fraudulent holiday sickness claims made against tour operators. The new measures prohibiting nuisance calls came into force over the weekend. People will now be given the choice to opt in to receiving calls offering to settle personal injury claims. Previously, people had […]