Marriott, Hilton are the latest Credit Card Breach victims

Marriott, Hilton are the latest Credit Card Breach victims -

It is found that retail stores may not have been the only targets of security breaches of last year. White Lodging Services Corporation - a company that manages the franchise hotel chains such as Marriott, Hilton, Sheraton, Westin and others - is among one of the latest victims of a breach of security that may have revealed debit and credit customer cards, as reported by Brian Krebs, a former journalist of The Washington post . The Indiana-based company works with 168 hotels in 21 states, with more than 30 restaurants, according to the company's Web site.

Lodging White said he is now the violation investigation and will provide details as they become available. He has not announced the number of credit or debit cards affected by the security breach, but Krebs said he believes that the violation took place from March 2013 to the end of the year.

What can I do to protect myself?

If you have stayed at a Marriott, Hilton, Sheraton, Westin and other brand managed by White Lodging at any time last year then it is better for you to follow all the steps detailed below. You can see a complete list of hotels managed by the company on its website. Note that the site does not include a complete list of restaurants managed by White Lodging, which means you may have been affected, even if you do not see the hotel on the site.

1. Check your bank statements: Comb through bank statements dating back to your hotel stay or March 2013, if you are not sure of the dates. Verify that you were the only one to complete all transactions and report any transaction that are not familiar to you as fraudulent transactions. The representative of your bank will be able to guide you through the process of fraud reports.

2. Learn about a new card: Change your credit or debit card number is an easy way to make the thieves have access to your financial information. It is important to note that most banks will not issue a new debit or credit card until it is confirmed fraudulent activity on an account, but you can still learn about obtaining a new debit or credit card because they will sometimes make exceptions.

3. Consider signing for identity theft protection: This is a route that is recommended by a couple of large companies affected by security breaches in 2013, such as Target and Neiman Marcus. These services offer protection from identity theft quality that not only monitor your personal information, but your three reports credit bureau - Experian, TransUnion and Equifax - to ensure that your credit information and personal relationships remain safe from identity thieves. And the best part is that most of these services offer some kind of free trial that allows you to test the service before making any financial commitment. Visit our identity notice of protection against theft to see which service will best suit your needs.