Hyatt Hotels Warns Customers About Credit Card Breach At 41 Properties

CHICAGO, IL -- Hyatt is warning customers about a credit card breach at 41 of its properties. The hotel chain said its cyber security team found evidence of unauthorized access to credit card information that was manually entered or swiped at the front desks of some of its hotels between March 18 and July 2 of this year.

Hyatt said customers' names, card numbers, and verification codes may have been vulnerable at 41 properties in 50 countries.

“Upon discovery, we launched a comprehensive investigation to understand what happened and how this occurred, which included engaging leading third-party experts, payment card networks and authorities,” the company said in a statement to Krebs on Security. “Hyatt’s layers of defense and other cybersecurity measures helped to identify and resolve the issue. This incident affects a small percentage of total payment cards used at the affected hotels during the at-risk dates." (For more local news, subscribe to free email news alerts and a daily newsletter for your hometown Patch.)

Seven Hyatt properties were hit in U.S. locations, including three in Hawaii, three in Puerto Rico and one in Guam. Properties in China were hit the hardest with 18 breaches.

In late 2015, Hyatt announced that hackers had gained access to credit card systems in 250 properties around the world.

The Illinois-based company said its cyber security team's internal investigation was completed Thursday, and the issue has been resolved. Hyatt said it's taken steps to prevent the breach from happening in the future.

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