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A 20-year-old man was arrested for allegedly hacking a travel booking website to reserve luxury rooms — some priced at 1,000 euros (RM4,620) — for just 0.01 euros (RM0.05)
According to the BBC, Spanish police detained the man while he staying at a high-end hotel in Madrid.
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Image via Zak Chapman / PexelsAuthorities said he racked up charges exceeding 20,000 euros (RM92,300) during several fraudulent stays
This cyber attack involved sabotaging the payment validation system, a method police said was the first of its kind detected in the country.
Investigators launched their inquiry after a travel booking site reported suspicious activity.
It took authorities only four days to track the suspect down, partly because he reportedly used his real identity to make the reservations.
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Image via New Straits Times / AFPAccording to the police, the suspect bypassed security by altering the system to authorise transactions after entering just a single cent as the payment amount
Initially, the bookings appeared legitimate. The red flag arose only when the payment platform transferred the actual amount — a measly 0.01 euros (RM0.05) — to the hotel's accounts.
At the time of his arrest, the man was four days into a stay that should have cost him 4,000 euros (RM18,500).
Beyond the room rate, he allegedly helped himself to minibar items and left various other service bills unpaid. This wasn't his first run-in either; reports indicated he had previously been arrested in the Canary Islands for similar luxury hotel antics.
While the police statement suggested other hotels may have been targeted, specific details remain under wraps.
