The Lodging Industry Addresses Identity Theft Urban Legend

While many members of the lodging industry employ magnetic-strip hotel room key cards, they do not supply a guests’ personal information such as credit card numbers, home address, or e-mail addresses.

According to the manufacturers of these devices, room key cards capture information through three embedded and encrypted tracks. Most hoteliers use track “three,” which contains locked information that usually lists the guest’s room number and check in/out dates. The remaining tracks (“one” and “two”) — if supplied by the hotel’s property management system - also provides additional, limited guest information.

“The issue of identity theft is a public concern that is reported to affect many Americans,” said AH&LA President and CEO Joseph A. McInerney. “We’re doing everything in our power to inform guests that this is a myth and that this is not in anyway, affecting their personal safety.”