PILLOW HOTELS, S.L. – €4,200 Fine (Spain, 2024)

The Spanish DPA has imposed a fine on PILLOW HOTELS, S.L.. A person had filed a complaint with the DPA. The individual had made a booking for an overnight stay with the controller via booking.com. A few days before the trip, they received a WhatsApp message from a person claiming to be the director of the hotel, addressing them by name and asking them to confirm the booking by referring to a fraudulent link to enter their credit card details. The data subject contacted the hotel to confirm the fraud and learned that similar cases were already known. During its investigation, the DPA found that the controller had failed to implement appropriate technical and organizational measures to prevent such fraud incidents. The DPA also found that the controller had failed to report these data breaches. The original fine of EUR 7,000 was reduced to EUR 4,200 upon admission of responsibility and voluntary payment.