marriott sign

Marriott Discloses Second Security Breach, Affecting Millions, In Two Years

The hack took place through Marriott Bonvoy, the company's loyalty app, and affected up to 5.2 million guests.

Disclosing its second major security breach in the past two years, the international hotel chain Marriott announced on Tuesday that a hacker had accessed data affecting up to 5.2 million guests who used Marriott Bonvoy, the company’s loyalty app.

Marriott said the hack first began in mid-February but company officials did not become aware until the end of February. A breach notification published on Marriott’s website details how a hacker used login credentials of two employees at a Marriott property to access customer information from the Bonvoy database.

“Upon discovery, we confirmed that the login credentials were disabled, immediately began an investigation, implemented heightened monitoring, and arranged resources to inform and assist guests,” the breach notification reads.

While the company investigation remains ongoing, Marriott has not found evidence that the hacker accessed account passwords, payment card information, passport information, national ID numbers or driver’s license numbers. The exposed information did include the following:

  • Contact details (e.g., name, mailing address, email address, and phone number)
  • Loyalty account information (e.g., account number and points balance, but not passwords)
  • Additional personal details (e.g., company, gender, and birthday day and month)
  • Partnerships and affiliations (e.g., linked airline loyalty programs and numbers)
  • Preferences (e.g., stay/room preferences and language preference)

Not all of this information was entered for each guest, the company said. Guests involved in the breach were notified by Marriott on Tuesday, and the chain has also set up a self-service online portal for guests to identify if their information was involved in the breach. Affected individuals can also see what categories of information were part of the breach.

Paul Bischoff, a privacy advocate with the tech research and consumer website Comparitech, said that the biggest threat facing Marriott customers in the recent breach is “targeted phishing.”

“Guests should be on the lookout for targeted messages from scammers posing as Marriott or a related company,” Bischoff said. “Don't click on links or attachments in unsolicited emails. Check email addresses and don't just trust display names. If you're uncertain as to whether a message is legitimate or not, ask Marriott using contact information found through Google.”

Back in November 2018, Marriott also disclosed that hackers had accessed personal details of an estimated 500 million guests worldwide through the Starwood Hotels reservation system it had acquired. While the company has since lowered the total to 383 million, Marriott has faced penalties in the U.K. for lax cybersecurity practices. Chinese hackers are suspected in that case.

Andrew Hollister, the director of LogRhythm Labs, noted that there are some positives to draw from Marriott’s disclosure on Tuesday, particularly in the company’s response time to the breach.

“In the previous incident in 2018, Marriott detected signs of unauthorized activity going back four years,” Hollister said. “In this new case, the activity appears to have begun in January 2020 and been detected during the course of February 2020. This is a significant improvement in time to detect and respond to a data breach.”

He added: “This latest data breach just goes to show that continuing vigilance is required to keep reducing the time to detect and respond to threats, and that real reductions in impact can be made with focus on this issue which affects every company on the globe which holds personal information.”

About the Author

Haley Samsel is an Associate Content Editor for the Infrastructure Solutions Group at 1105 Media.

Featured

  • 7 Reasons Why Governments Need to Regulate AI

    Recently, Elon Musk unveiled two remarkable AI applications. A humanoid robot named Optimus, with its remarkable human-like speech and movements, and a fully autonomous car, absent steering wheel and pedals, called Cybercab. While these examples represent a broad trend of AI integration across industries, they highlight technology’s transformative potential, prompting a need for regulation to ensure it is used responsibly, securely and ethically. Read Now

  • OR Code Phishing on the Rise According to New Report

    KnowBe4 recently released its Q3 2024 Phishing Report. This quarter's findings reveal the most frequently clicked email subjects in simulated phishing tests, demonstrating the continued efficacy of HR and IT-related phishing attempts. KnowBe4’s Q3 2024 Phishing Report reveals that HR and IT-related phishing emails claim a significant 48.6% share of top-clicked phishing types globally. Despite evolving techniques by bad actors, phishing emails remain among the most prevalent tools for executing cyberattacks. Read Now

  • United HealthCare CEO Killed in Targeted Attack in New York City

    United HealthCare CEO Brian Thompson was killed in a targeted attack early Wednesday in Manhattan Read Now

  • Theft, Crime Driving Retail Workers to Look for New Jobs

    More than four in ten retail workers in the U.S. say they are likely to leave their current job in the next 12 months due to personal safety concerns, according to new research conducted by the Loss Prevention Research Council (LPRC) in partnership with Verkada. Read Now

Featured Cybersecurity

Webinars

New Products

  • FEP GameChanger

    FEP GameChanger

    Paige Datacom Solutions Introduces Important and Innovative Cabling Products GameChanger Cable, a proven and patented solution that significantly exceeds the reach of traditional category cable will now have a FEP/FEP construction. 3

  • Automatic Systems V07

    Automatic Systems V07

    Automatic Systems, an industry-leading manufacturer of pedestrian and vehicle secure entrance control access systems, is pleased to announce the release of its groundbreaking V07 software. The V07 software update is designed specifically to address cybersecurity concerns and will ensure the integrity and confidentiality of Automatic Systems applications. With the new V07 software, updates will be delivered by means of an encrypted file. 3

  • 4K Video Decoder

    3xLOGIC’s VH-DECODER-4K is perfect for use in organizations of all sizes in diverse vertical sectors such as retail, leisure and hospitality, education and commercial premises. 3