The Associated Press reports that two women were arrested in Round Rock, Texas after they were found going through the trash behind an Extended Stay America hotel, allegedly to find information that could be used for identity theft and fraudulent purposes.
KEYE TV reports that in this case, it may not have been the trash that posed a risk to guests and employees:
Police say in their car about 100 names, credit card numbers, and other information of employees and guests. Police say the women told them they stole the info from hotel storage rooms. You may think your credit card information being stored on a paper somewhere is illegal. Bur Christina Tetreault, a Consumers Union staff attorney, says it isn’t. “There really aren’t laws on the books for how they store it and how long they store it down to the detail that consumers are interested in,” Tetreault explained. Depending on the circumstances the hotel might not be liable for fraud. “If these were locked storage areas and the merchant had a reason for maintaining that payment card information it doesn’t sound like there’s particular liability that would be involved,” Tetreault continued.