Otelier, a widely used data management software in the hospitality industry, has recently made headlines after becoming the target of a data breach, raising significant concerns about the security of customer information.
The platform, which serves major hotel chains like Marriott, Hilton, and Hyatt, was compromised in July 2024. Hackers are believed to have gained unauthorized access to data stored in Amazon Web Services (AWS) storage buckets. The breach resulted in the theft of over 8 terabytes of data over a span of three months, from July to October 2024.
As of now, Otelier has reportedly suspended its operations and brought in a team of cybersecurity experts to investigate the breach. Freelance security expert Stacey Magpie speculates that the stolen data could include sensitive details such as email addresses, contact information, guest visit purposes, and stay durations—information that could be exploited in phishing schemes and identity theft.
Otelier, which was previously known as “MyDigitalOffice,” has not yet issued an official statement about the breach. However, it is suspected that a threat group was behind the attack, potentially gaining access to AWS credentials from an employee through malware and then transferring the stolen data to their own servers. An anonymous employee has confirmed that no payment or employee data, nor any operational data, was compromised during the breach.
This incident highlights the importance for hospitality businesses to take proactive measures to secure customer data. A data breach not only jeopardizes sensitive information but also damages trust with customers, potentially driving them to competitors.
To mitigate risks, businesses in the hospitality sector should implement robust data protection strategies, including maintaining effective data continuity plans, applying regular software updates, educating staff about cybersecurity risks, automating network traffic monitoring for suspicious activity, deploying firewalls to block threats, and encrypting sensitive information.
