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Researchers from consumer group ‘Which?’ say they’ve successfully listed 10 Downing Street on Booking.com as part of a security test. The property was ‘available’ for two months before being removed.
Fancy a stay on Downing Street? Consider yourself a future Prime Minister and need to trial run your accommodation? We’ve got you covered.
Well, not really, but consumer group ‘Which?’ says it successfully listed 10 Downing Street on popular property and travel agency ‘Booking.com’ for two months before it was removed, suggesting major security issues on the platform. The address was available via request, and ‘Which?’ says 14 people got in touch in a 20-minute window.
The listing mentioned a four-minute walk to the Houses of Parliament and included a fake review describing a stay as ‘exceptional.’ Larry the Cat, the residential feline that’s seen Prime Ministers come and go for over 15 years, also received an honorary shout-out. Good stuff.
All jollies aside, the listing being so obviously fake, yet still passable by ‘Booking.com’s’ security checks, implies some worrying flaws in the website’s infrastructure. ‘Which?’ said that property platforms should do more to enforce strict censorship and remove fraudulent content as part of the Online Safety Act.
Editor of ‘Which? Travel,’ Rory Boland, spoke to The Guardian. ‘If ‘Booking.com’s’ so-called sophisticated AI systems can’t spot that 10 Downing Street is not a holiday rental, then it’s no wonder scammers can exploit the platform so easily,’ they said.
It comes after customers previously accused ‘Booking.com’ of failing to protect them from cyber-criminals.
