Dear Guests,
We have recently confirmed that some guests who made reservations at Hotel Nikko Princess Kyoto through Expedia, a booking site operated by Expedia Inc. (headquartered in Seattle, USA), received messages directing them to a phishing site (*). Please be aware that neither our hotel nor Expedia will ever contact guests via email or chat to request credit card information or demand payment. We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience and concern this may have caused.
*A "phishing site" refers to a fake website that impersonates a real website in order to defraud people of personal information using fraudulent methods.
■ Important Request to Our Customers
- Neither our hotel nor Expedia will ever ask you to enter your credit card information via message or email. Please never open any links in suspicious messages or emails, and never enter your credit card information.
- If you have accidentally entered your information, please contact your credit card company immediately.
■ Scope of personal information accessed illegally
This data includes the names, phone numbers, dates of stay, and amounts of accommodation for some customers who made reservations through Expedia for stays between March 5, 2026 and February 27, 2027. *Credit card information is not included.
■Background of the Event
On March 2, 2026, we confirmed that our hotel's Expedia administrator account was fraudulently used by a third party, who impersonated a hotel employee and sent fake messages to customers via the messaging app "WhatsApp"* requesting them to enter their credit card information.
Customers whose personal information may have been accessed without authorization received an email from Expedia earlier that month warning them to be careful of suspicious messages.
Furthermore, on March 18th of the same year, our hotel sent an email of apology and warning to customers whose personal information may have been accessed without authorization and whose addresses we were able to confirm.
*WhatsApp is the name of a free messaging and calling app provided by Meta Inc. (headquartered in California, USA) and used in over 180 countries worldwide.
■ Our hotel's response <br />The unauthorized login was promptly detected and blocked, and no further unauthorized access has been confirmed since then. Subsequently, we took necessary measures such as changing the password, and the account has been restored.
Going forward, we will work in cooperation with Expedia and external experts to take all necessary measures to prevent recurrence, including strengthening security measures against suspicious emails sent to the management screen and accommodation facilities.
We sincerely apologize again for the great inconvenience and concern this has caused our customers.
■ Contact Information <br />Hotel Nikko Princess Kyoto Reservations Department Tel: 075-361-5111 *Operating hours: 10:00 - 17:00 (Japan Standard Time)
Email: rsr@princess-kyoto.co.jp
*For identity verification purposes, we will ask for your reservation number, name, and check-in date.
