Cybersecurity and Tourism
Technology is reshaping how tourism companies interact with their customers. The sector is undergoing a digital transformation, which will deliver benefits while also posing challenges. One key challenge entails securely handling massive amounts of personal and financial data belonging to customers, i.e. tourists.
A cyberattack on a hotel chain’s computer systems can jeopardize its operations, with the resulting loss of reputation and customer trust, which directly impacts business.
Joan Antoni Malonda, GMV’s Tourism Business Developer, spoke on these topics at Cybersecurity and Tourism: A Need or a Priority?, an event put on by the University of the Balearic Islands (UIB) and the Government of the Balearic Islands in collaboration with INCIBE, SEGITTUR and AnySolutions on 18 April. The expert took part in the panel discussion “Cybersecurity as a Strategy for Competitive Tourism,” sharing his knowledge alongside Dr. Llorenç Huguet i Rotger, Professor of Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence at the UIB; Xavier Pascuet, Director of Tourism at Calvià Town Hall; Dolores Ordoñez (AnySolution, Turistec ®); Víctor Pujadas (Intec Cybersecurity), and Iván Gutiérrez Agüero (TECNALIA Research & Innovation).
Malonda went into detail about the techniques employed by cybercriminals to commit their crimes, such as spear phising and smishing, explaining specific attacks that have already been waged against the sector. He also shared his thoughts on the possibilities made available to the tourism business by artificial intelligence, but warned of the precautions that must also be taken. He said: “Cybercriminals are employing software to create multiple customer accounts and make fake room bookings with them. Similarly, they are using AI programs to mimic the behavior of legitimate customers and make bogus bookings that are hard to detect.”