Trump International Hotel is a 5 star luxury hotel located at Central Park West, Manhattan, New York City. It has several luxury hotel rooms as well as residential condominiums. Like other businesses, Trump International faces a number of security related challenges that are detrimental to its business operations. Among those challenges include credit card fraud, robbery, vandalism and bad checks. Although not all the challenges can be reduced to 0%, a number of measures may be taken to mitigate against the risks posed by those security-related challenges.
All the three types of credit card fraud present a risk to Trump International and its customers. Therefore, stringent measures need to be put into place in order to reduce credit card fraud to the bare minimum. Among the means that Trump International can adopt to avoid credit card fraud include evaluating all the incoming bookings that use credit card for potential fraud. Automated screening maybe used to identify the probability associated with a risk or to validate the identity of a customer. Results obtained from the automated screening may then be interpreted by humans to determine if the transaction should be accepted or denied. The number of automated detection tools may be increasing depending on the number of booking that use credit cards. In order to avoid and eliminate skimming, Trump International should clearly stipulate the punitive measures to employees who contravene the organization’s policy and engage in criminal acts. In cases where skimming is suspected, the hotel can cooperate with the relevant anti-fraud units to investigate the fraud allegations and prosecute where necessary. Phishing, on the other hand, could be eliminated by making sure that counterfeit websites that maybe used to con potential clients are reported to the relevant authorities as soon as possible and keeping hackers at bay.
Another risk that Trump International faces is vandalism. The hotel can suffer from vandalism when customers or even employees engage in ruthless destruction and defacing of property without permission from the management. A number of means may be adopted to keep vandals away. For instance, the use f good lighting within and outside the hotel will ensure that potential vandals can be seen, and this increases the chances of getting caught. To avoid the damage of glass on windows and doors, the hotel may use unbreakable glass, which would reduce the chances to vandalize. The use of few exits and entrances, which are guarded by the hotel’s security, will also ensure that vandals are kept at bay. By locking gates and external doors, unauthorised access to the building will be prevented. In addition, locking up equipment and tools that can be easy target for vandals will eliminate unnecessary vandalism. Lastly, anyone seen committing acts of vandalism should be reported immediately for further action by the relevant authorities.
On many occasions, Trump International undertakes transactions that require checks due to the hefty amounts of cash involved. In such instances, some dishonest customer may present bad checks, which ultimately lead to loss of money and profits. To counteract this challenge, Trump International needs to have a check policy in place. The first thing is to ensure that the customer signs the check in the presence of a trustworthy representative of the hotel. As the customer signs the cheque, the representative should ensure that the customer’s phone number and address appear on the check. If the customer gives addresses that do not appear to be traceable, the representative should think twice before accepting the check. The representative of the hotel should also look out for post-dated checks. This is because, in some states, the writer of a post-dated check cannot be held liable. Lastly, the hotel representative should confirm identity of the customer by checking if the details of the customer’s ID, driver’s license or passport math with the details provided in the check.
The last big security risk posed to Trump International is burglary. This occurs when robbers find their way inside the hotel rooms with the intention of stealing. Most burglaries take place within the day, when most of the rooms are unoccupied. Statistics show that burglars operate alone. To prevent burglary, Trump International needs to use strong locks and doors to keep burglars who cut locks at bay. In addition, the hotel needs to use access control systems to prevent unauthorised access to the building and its hotel rooms.
Some of the biggest security threats that could lead to external losses within Trump International include credit card fraud, vandalism, bad checks and burglary. All these crimes lead to unnecessary expenses and inconvenience to both the hotel and its customers. The steps outlined for each challenge will go a long way in preventing fraud and protecting the property of the hotel.
References
Dempsey, J. S. (2010). Introduction to Private Security. Stamford, CT : Cengage.
Montague, D. A. (2004). Fraud prevention techniques for credit card fraud. Bloomington, IN :
Trafford Publishing.
O'Fallon, M. J., & Rutherford, D. G. (2010). Hotel management and operations. New York, NY
: John Wiley & Sons.
