Positive guest experience is paramount in the hospitality industry- this includes the service from hotel staff, cleanliness and comfort of the room, but most importantly hotel security. According to the recent White Paper “A Survey on the Current State of Hotel Security,” the industry is subject to new risks (along with the traditional) which can lead to a negative guest experience with both financial and legal repercussions.

So what did the survey find are current oppotrunities for security reinforcement? And what can be done to ensure a positive guest experience and prevention malicious incidents?

Only 27% of the hospitality industry reports having security personnel on duty 24/7; meanwhile, 47% of hotels and the like experience 0-50 thefts annually, with 18% reporting between 500-1000 thefts, and even more alarming 2001 plus thefts in 6% of these places.

External threats are of course a concern for properties, but too often hotels are seeing room thefts conducted by a trusted individual with internal access. These breaches at times occur by accident, but still with malicious intent. “Travelers expect their hotel rooms to be their sanctuary, a place where they can store their personal belongings and sleep without fear.” (White Paper, 2) Hotel safes are a common place for guests to secure their belongings- it is much more convenient than a communal safety deposit box, giving guests access to their affects in-room. But how can a guest be sure that someone won’t come in later with a master key, open up thewall safe or drawer safe, and take items? The best form of prevention is an having the ability to keep track of all entries to the safe. When an individual knows there are measures which can document all usage, they are then less likely to attempt a theft. 240 Audit trails are a great way to document said safe openings, and Safemark safes employ such technology.

Hacker can get into keycards

The next security pitfall? 19% of hotels do not know the last time they updated their door lock systems. At the 2012 Black Hat Security Conference, a flaw in hotel keycards was discovered: they could be hacked. In a note from Callaghan, hotels have been advised to upgrade to RFID door lock technology, with the lock and keycards employing advanced encryption. Such measures can prevent a hacker from being able to access millions of rooms.