Starwood data hack shows need for China to explore class-action lawsuits

INTERNATIONAL HOTEL CHAIN MARRIOTT INTERNATIONAL disclosed on Friday that the guest reservation database of its Starwood properties had been hacked. A few hours later consumer class-action lawsuits were filed. Beijing News comments:

The security breach is believed to have compromised the information of as many as 500 million guests, exposing in some cases credit card numbers, passport numbers and birthdates.

According to Marriott International's statement on its official website, Marriott found unauthorized access to the Starwood network had taken place as early as in 2014. But the company knew nothing about it until Sept 8 this year when it received an alert about an attempt to access the Starwood guest reservation database.