Cyber piracy strikes at tourism

Source: Tourism Update, 23/11/2017

Cyber piracy in the tourism industry is fast becoming a major problem,
with websites mimicking those of legitimate reserves and lodges.
A concerned reader recently alerted Tourism Update to the growing
prevalence of cyber piracy within the tourism sector, with companies
creating websites that mimic those of reserves and lodges in order to
mislead travellers into booking with them instead.
Various cases have been identified, such as Timbavati Private Nature
Reserve and Madikwe, to name a few.
About a month ago, the Timbavati was made aware of a website mimicking
the reserve. Despite engaging with the people responsible for creating
the website, at this stage they seem to think they are doing nothing
wrong, a lodge owner within the Timbavati Private Nature Reserve told
Tourism Update.
The same lodge owner said he had also recently had a similar
experience with another website mimicking the lodge’s name and brand.
“In this case, one of our source agents in the US informed us that
some information on our website was incorrect. Upon investigation, we
found that the website was not ours at all, but that of a local tour
operator who was using our name and brand entirely, including a
version of our domain name, with no reference to the tour operator
whatsoever,” said the lodge owner.
Clients scammed
He mentioned that they were also contacted by two separate guests who
wanted to make a booking directly with the lodge, but had come across
the other website, confusing them as to which was genuine. Ultimately,
they were scammed, as they decided to make the booking.
Lodge scammed
“In the case where my own lodge website was mimicked, the operator
concerned had separately negotiated an STO rate with us and we gave
them access to our media centre, assuming they would use our images
and material to showcase us on their own branded website. We then
discovered they were using our name and brand to attract potential
guests to a website that in no way mentioned their brand, but was made
to look as if the guest was dealing with our product.”
The operator behind the fake Timbavati website was using the STO rates
that the various lodges in the Timbavati had given in good faith, and
publishing rates below the lodges rack rates, thus undercutting the
products themselves and potentially distorting the market.
He says this has been an ongoing problem. In 2015 the Timbavati had to
deal with a similar fraudulent website that was set up by a tour
operator. The tour operator at that time resisted all demands from the
reserve to shut down the website and hand over the domain. The case
was eventually taken to arbitration with the South African Institute
of Intellectual Property Law (SAIIPL). The reserve won the case.
Signs to look out for
He says it is difficult for potential guests to see immediately
whether they have arrived at a legitimate website or not. The biggest
indicator is that the bogus website is usually a fairly simple
one-pager that has automated links to pages like TripAdvisor, and does
not have its own blog or social media links (although some also have
bogus social media platforms that generally only re-share links from
other products).
“I would suggest always asking the direct question when making contact
through a web chat or email link as to whether they are dealing with
the lodge/reserve, or whether they are dealing with a tour operator,”
he concludes.