What cyber risks do restaurants face?

Feeling famished after a long day, you walk into your favourite takeout restaurant to order dinner. You place your order, and the restaurant’s Wi-Fi enabled Point of Sale (POS) system sends it directly to the kitchen and processes your payment.

Behind the scenes, the cloud-based POS system manages reservations, inventory, food usage, loyalty programs, table service, online ordering, pickup, delivery, and payroll.

With such heavy reliance on cloud-enabled operations, it’s no surprise that 46 percent of restaurant and foodservices cyber losses are caused by malware and hacking¹.

The top 3 patterns for cyber breaches to the foodservices and hospitality industry are point of sale intrusions, web applications and crimeware¹.

In February 2019 a restaurant chain’s POS system was compromised by hackers, who deployed malware through its third-party POS vendor. The malware was designed to collect the personal and financial data of customers, such as name, credit / debit card number, expiration date and CVV. The company responded by engaging an IT security and forensics firm to contain the event and restore systems. It then proceeded to notify its customers of the incident, advising them to monitor transactions and credit reports for suspicious activity.

It’s not only chains that are being targeted. POS intrusions often target small businesses¹.

Most restaurants process takeout and delivery orders through their own web app. Payment card web app compromises are well on their way to exceeding physical terminal compromises in payment card-related breaches².

In web application compromises, attackers scan specific vulnerabilities, gain access, insert malware and harvest payment card data for profit.

Crimeware is a class of malware designed to automate cybercrime.

Hackers exploit insecure remote access software, deficient networks, and weak user credentials, with the intent to gain access to POS systems, to collect, steal, and monetize data.

Learn more about HSB’s Data Compromise and CyberOne® coverages and services designed for restaurant clients, or contact your HSB representative.