Beginning as early as 2014, Starwood hotels, now owned by Marriott, experienced a massive data security breach reportedly at the hands of Chinese hackers. The breach may have exposed the personal data of as many as 500 million guests of the hotel chain.
Once the news of this breach became public, the far-reaching costs began showing almost immediately. According to Forbes, “The company now faces a class-action suit and shares have subsequently fallen 5.6%. On top of this, Marriott says for about 327 million victims, compromised data may include names, addresses and passport numbers — prompting Senator Chuck Schumer to demand that it “foot the bill” for new passports.”
Not all costs of such a breach translate directly to a dollar amount. NBC News illustrates some of the other struggles companies face after their systems have been invaded. “Aside from expensive technical investigations and regulatory filings, a breach also includes hidden costs such as lost business, negative impact on reputation, and employee time spent on recovery, according to a new report by the Ponemon Institute.”
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