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Registered Users of Hotels Website Might be at Risk

Hotels dot com is one of the biggest online resources for hotels and vacation information and has millions of registered users. A company spokesperson said on Saturday that a laptop containing sensitive credit card information was stolen from one of the company`s auditors. The computer has stored information about the company`s customers and many users are at risk for credit card fraud.

The password-protected computer was taken in late February from a locked car. The computer belongs to an Ernst & Young auditor who was working for the company. "As a result of our ongoing communication with law enforcement, we don`t have any indication that any credit card numbers have been used for fraudulent activity," Kranhold said. "It appears the laptop was not the target of the break-in."

The company has mailed registered users of Hotels to notify them about the incident. Hotels are calling their users to take appropriate action to protect their personal information and to monitor any change in their financial details. Ernst & Young is extremely sorry for the incident and have sent mails expressing their feelings. "We deeply regret this incident has occurred and want to apologize to you and Hotels.com for any inconvenience or concern this may cause," said the unsigned memo from Ernst & Young dated May 2006.