How hotels can protect their data: multi-layered IT protection and infrastructure security‍

When we say "hotel," most people first think of relaxation. However, it's now 2025, and hotels no longer serve solely as places for rest and enjoyment. Hotels have become spaces that, in addition to safeguarding their guests' belongings, now also protect their data—and their own. The issues hotels face are no longer confined to the reception desk. The anxious guest at three in the morning, upset about not having a hairdryer in the room, is no longer the biggest concern for any hotel. The digital world has become a place from which increasing threats are emerging for hotels.

The following scenario is something you don't need to imagine. It has happened. And it happens daily to many hotels. A regular working day. Guests are enjoying their stay, but a technical malfunction occurs, a moment of negligence, and suddenly valuable equipment and data are stolen.

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How would you protect yourself?

If your infrastructure uses adequate multi-layered protection, you can limit the damage even if one security mechanism fails. In this text, we will explain why data encryption, advanced firewalls, and multi-factor authentication are crucial for hotel security.‍

‍Hotel security in real life

This time, we will describe an incident at one of the hotels where we manage the IT infrastructure and information security. The event shows us that mistakes can happen every day, that individual solutions in the areas of IT, information, and physical security are not all-powerful, and that comprehensive protection of our information requires multi-layered security, because it is always possible that one or more security mechanisms may fail.

The client experienced a situation where laptops were stolen from the office and meeting room, which were prepared for work or a staff meeting. Since the office and meeting room were in a locked area, inaccessible to regular hotel guests, we first had to determine what had actually happened. Fortunately, the hotel’s public areas are equipped with a video surveillance system, which helped us uncover the sequence of events.

From the video footage, we determined that the perpetrator quickly (just a few seconds after the colleagues went for coffee) entered through a door that hadn’t closed properly, and he didn’t need a card or key to get in. We also saw that, after just a few minutes, he left the premises with a backpack, which he had also stolen from the office, full of laptops on his back, and exited the hotel. Throughout the incident, he wore a cap with a visor that effectively covered his face, making him impossible to identify from the footage.

After the incident was reported, we took care of changing passwords or deactivating all accounts that were potentially compromised. The hotel staff handled the reporting and assisted the police with the investigation. Hotel and data security was our top priority.

Multi-layered data protection is key to hotel security

In the end, despite the video footage and the theft report to the police, we were unable to identify or capture the perpetrator, and the laptops were lost for the company. However, what is more important in this case is that the perpetrator could not access the data on the computers. If the company hadn’t implemented disk encryption on all the computers, this incident would have had much more serious consequences, as it could have exposed business data and even personal information of guests. The damage would have been far greater than the mere theft of the computers. It would have amounted to millions.

The lesson we learned together with the client is that effective protection of business information is a complex and multi-layered challenge. Multiple levels of protection can limit the damage, even if one of the security mechanisms completely fails. That’s why we recommend that companies do not rely on just one mechanism, such as locking rooms or antivirus programs.

More such incidents are possible in the digital world, where malicious actors are not limited by physical location and threaten us from virtually all corners of the globe. Therefore, we strongly recommend not relying on just one form of protection.‍
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How Unija ETL IT Solutions helps with security and data protection

At Unija ETL IT Solutions, we can assist you in analyzing the current state, planning changes, implementing, and maintaining IT systems and security mechanisms, such as:‍

• Advanced firewall systems
• Multi-factor authentication (2FA/MFA)
• Antivirus implementation
• XDR and data loss prevention solutions

It is crucial to choose a comprehensive approach that prevents or, in the worst-case scenario, limits the damage a company can suffer when individual security mechanisms fail.

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