EU Opens Investigation Into Booking.com Over Fraud Risks and Phishing Scams
What Happened
The European Commission has opened a formal investigation into Booking.com under the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA) to assess whether the travel platform has adequately addressed fraudulent property listings, impersonation scams and phishing attacks. Regulators will also examine whether paid-for boosted listings are clearly identified as advertisements. The inquiry follows a preliminary review of risk assessment reports submitted by Booking.com over several years. Booking.com said it is cooperating with the investigation.
Key Takeaways
The case raises regulatory scrutiny of how large online platforms protect users from fraud and disclose paid promotions. If violations of the DSA are confirmed, Booking.com could face penalties of up to 6% of its global annual turnover.