Big rise in fraud attacks against airlines
Fraud attack rates against airlines have risen dramatically over the last year while attacks on the hotel sector have fallen.
According to the latest Fraud Attack Index from e-commerce fraud prevention specialists, Forter, attack rates on airlines have jumped 61%.
Forter said the increase can likely be attributed to the rise in loyalty programme issues and some related data breaches.
These include the British Airways breach that impacted customer information from around 380,000 booking transactions made in the summer of 2018.
"With such immense wealths of data available, fraudsters are focusing their attentions on account-based attacks and other forms of abuse in addition to transactional fraud attacks," said the report.
Meanwhile, there has been a 10% drop in the number of fraud attacks against the hotel sector.
"Hotels have introduced friction-free experiences in order to provide their customers benefits and the best services. However, as a result of these more seamless experiences, there was a rise in fraud in this area, followed by countered efforts to increase friction in order to deter these fraudsters, thus the small decrease in rates," the report explained.
Fraud attacks against car rental firms, trains and buses have increased by 38%.
"This increase is attributed to the fact that car rentals and ride services apply less friction in their platforms – ease of pick up in parking, no ID required, etc. – in order to remain competitive in the market and’¨for the perceived better customer experience," said Forter.
"The push for an excellent and friction-free customer experience has created vulnerabilities in these platforms, which fraudsters have been targeting.
Across all industries, there has been a significant rise in loyalty fraud of 89%.
"A clear trend in online fraud is emerging," said Michael Reitblat, CEO and Co-Founder of Forter.
"The industry as a whole has done a tremendous job detecting and preventing payment fraud at the point of transaction. This eliminates the amateurs. We’re seeing fraudsters now shift their efforts earlier in the customer journey, gaining access to consumers’ accounts."
Bev
Editor in chief Bev Fearis has been a travel journalist for 25 years. She started her career at Travel Weekly, where she became deputy news editor, before joining Business Traveller as deputy editor and launching the magazine’s website. She has also written travel features, news and expert comment for the Guardian, Observer, Times, Telegraph, Boundless and other consumer titles and was named one of the top 50 UK travel journalists by the Press Gazette.
Vegas’s Billion-Dollar Secrets – What They Don’t Want Tourists to Know
Visit Florida’s New CEO Bryan Griffin Shares His Vision for State Tourism with Graham
Chicago’s Tourism Renaissance: Graham Interviews Kristin Reynolds of Choose Chicago
Graham Talks with Cassandra McCauley of MMGY NextFactor About the Latest Industry Research
Destination International’s Andreas Weissenborn: Research, Advocacy, and Destination Impact
Graham and Don Welsh Discuss the Success of Destinations International’s Annual Conference
Graham and CEO Andre Kiwitz on Ventura Travel’s UK Move and Recruitment for the Role
Brett Laiken and Graham Discuss Florida’s Tourism Momentum and Global Appeal
Graham and Elliot Ferguson on Positioning DC as a Cultural and Inclusive Global Destination
Graham Talks to Fraser Last About His England-to-Ireland Trek for Mental Health Awareness
Kathy Nelson Tells Graham About the Honour of Hosting the World Cup and Kansas City’s Future
Graham McKenzie on Sir Richie Richardson’s Dual Passion for Golf and His Homeland, Antigua
ADS PRO 
Phocuswright reveals the world's largest travel markets in volume in 2025
Higher departure tax and visa cost, e-arrival card: Japan unleashes the fiscal weapon against tourists
Cyclone in Sri Lanka had limited effect on tourism in contrary to media reports
Singapore to forbid entry to undesirable travelers with new no-boarding directive
Euromonitor International unveils world’s top 100 city destinations for 2025