Tourism Risk Management

🚫 Customers don’t like negativity. There is always a way to focus on a positive message. This is how Copenhagen did it. Tell customers “don’t do this” or “here’s the problem” and you risk the opposite effect. Most companies communicate problems. Companies and governments talks about restrictions. But nobody likes it. 🌍 Great brands (and cities) flip the script. They turn challenges into opportunities. Take Copenhagen. The city faced overtourism. Instead of saying “we need fewer tourists”, it asked: “how can we make visitors part of the solution?” 👉 The result: CopenPay. Tourists earn free meals, boat rides, bike rentals, or museum discounts when they make sustainable choices — like taking the train, helping in an urban garden, or exploring less-visited neighborhoods. The impact? ✅ Relieved pressure from crowded areas ✅ Boosted local small businesses ✅ Strengthened sustainability & community ✅ Created happier visitors ✨ This is CX at its best: no restrictions, no negativity — just new opportunities for everyone. 🚀 The lesson: if you want people on board, don’t focus on the problem. Invite them into a chance to make things better.

A cyber attack impacted MGM properties. I was onsite for an event. What can you do to be prepared? Cyber attacks are becoming more frequent. The impact and scale of MGM's latest was massive. What happened? 19 properties on the Strip were affected. On Monday, MGM was checking in guests manually. The reservation system was down. Hotel key cards were not working. As of Thursday, the outage is ongoing. How did events react? I was onsite for a client event. I heard about the attack on Monday morning and received an email from the event apologizing for the inconvenience. By then, attendees were checking in at the hotel as the event would have kicked off the next day. Manual check-in procedures were taking a substantial amount of time. This particular property offered drinks and refreshments to guests while they waited. The planners added refreshments at registration for the event to ease the pain of waiting guests (more on this on my newsletter next week - link on top of my profile). The planners followed up with another email explaining check-out procedures, adding a service layer to the affected MGM property. What if this happens to your event? Audit your Tech. What measures does your event technology platform take to protect sensitive data? Especially data of attendees who could be more likely targets of an attack. This kind of attack also impacts potential integrations with less secure apps. Two Factor Authentication. Implementing a double layer of security with your stack is critical. Also, tell your team and attendees which links are safe to click on. Cyber Liability. Consider specific insurance to protect your event from the impact of a cyber attack and the potential financial liability that can result from your involvement. Onsite. How secure is the infrastructure at the event? Do you have a backup plan if the venue is affected? Material impact. If a data breach occurs, investigate whether it affected your attendee data and communicate the findings swiftly. How do you protect your event from cyber-attacks?

🛫 Asia’s travel boom is a tipping point - and a test. Tourism in APAC is a US$3T engine (10% of GDP), supporting 185M jobs and welcoming 650M visitors. But growth without design can concentrate benefits in a few hotspots, strain infrastructure, price out locals, and trigger boom–bust cycles. Given tourism’s weight in our economies, we must build now so its benefits are lasting and widely shared.   This week, I spoke about the future of tourism at the Singapore Hotel Association's Hospitality Exchange 2025. Here are some of the thoughts I shared on what this “building” should look like:   🔍 Move beyond headcounts: Today, anonymized spend data can reveal where visitors go, how they move, and what they value. These insights help destinations anticipate demand, guide flows, and protect fragile sites before congestion hits.   🌐 Reimagine travel hubs as launchpads: Not just arrival points, but orchestrators of regional tourism, connecting visitors to lesser-known destinations and easing pressure on city centers and mainstream attractions.    🚆Build layered connectivity: Invest in and integrate hard infrastructure like airports with regional flight connectivity, high-speed rail, and room capacity, with soft infrastructure like digital readiness in the form of interoperable payment 💳 and transit systems to enable seamless journeys for tourists and locals alike.   🤖 Activate AI agents: Shift from search to end-to-end curation—connecting travelers with authentic, purpose-driven experiences, enabling seamless navigation, and dynamically managing visitor flows. It’s the new paradigm for smarter, more sustainable tourism.   The goal: tourism that enriches communities, preserves culture, and strengthens local economies. More than riding the wave, this is how Asia can define the next era of global travel.

⚠️ CYBERSECURITY ALERT: Travel eSIMs may be convenient, but they come with hidden risks. A recent investigation by Northeastern University, reported by Juha Saarinen in iTnews, found that many travel eSIM providers route user traffic through foreign networks—including China—without informing customers. The study revealed that popular providers like Holafly and Airalo sometimes pushed traffic through China Mobile, assigning users IP addresses that made devices appear to be located inside China. This raises major concerns about data jurisdiction, surveillance, and access to restricted services. Even more alarming, the barrier to becoming an eSIM reseller is low. With just an email and payment method, resellers can access sensitive identifiers (IMSI numbers) and in some cases approximate device location. Silent “phone home” behaviour was also detected, with eSIMs quietly sending data to overseas servers. This connects with long-standing telecom security issues. China’s networks, already scrutinised for SS7 and 4G vulnerabilities, have been leveraged for surveillance and traffic interception. The fact that travel eSIMs route traffic through such infrastructures could open doors for snooping, interception, and even exploitation by state-level or criminal actors. With global travel accelerating, regulators and telecom providers must prioritise transparency and stronger safeguards. For travellers and businesses, awareness is the first defence. #CyberSecurity #TelecomSecurity #eSIM #DataPrivacy #China #Surveillance #linkedinnewsaustralia #linkedinnewsusa #linkedinnewseurope #linkedinnewsasia Reference: “Travel eSIMs secretly route traffic over Chinese and undisclosed networks: study” by Juha Saarinen, iTnews, August 19, 2025. image credit: Grok AI generated image

Copenhagen just launched one of the smartest responses to overtourism I’ve seen. A tourism strategy that rewards contribution over consumption, and it’s working. Tourists in Copenhagen can help maintain a community garden in return for a freshly made lunch. Or even earn a free kayak rental just by collecting rubbish along the way. It’s all part of CopenPay, an initiative from Rikke Holm Petersen and the team at Wonderful Copenhagen that might be one of the most progressive tourism strategies I’ve seen in years. At a time when cities like Venice and Barcelona are overwhelmed by overtourism, and I’ve shared my strong opposition to visitor taxes, Copenhagen is offering a new model: Contribution-based tourism. The idea is to shift the visitor's mindset from passive consumer to active participant. The data proves it’s having an impact, with Copenhagen projecting 24% tourism growth by 2030. For travel marketers, does this represent a credible pillar in your destination positioning? Should you be designing campaigns around value exchange rather than value extraction? If it helps redistribute tourist flows and reduce pressure on overburdened places, I think the answer is fairly obvious. I’d love to hear from any tourism marketers that are doing this or have examples where this is being done, so we can share it on Beautiful Destinations! Image Credit: Adrienne Murray

🌏 Destination Stewardship in the Age of Overcrowding: What Bali Must Learn from Global Cities The World Travel & Tourism Council’s latest report is both a wake-up call and a roadmap. Titled “Managing Destination Overcrowding: A Call to Action from the Travel & Tourism Private Sector”, it makes the case that the real risk to popular destinations like Bali isn’t tourism itself — but the failure to manage it systemically. 📉 In Europe, the report warns that reducing tourism to “average” levels could erase $245 billion in GDP and nearly 3 million jobs within 3 years. But it equally shows that unchecked visitor pressure, if not addressed with evidence-based planning, threatens the very essence of place — and with it, long-term competitiveness. So how does this apply to Bali? 👉 Bali is not “over-touristed” — it is under-managed. Much like Venice or Barcelona, Bali faces the consequences of: High visitor density in a few iconic nodes (e.g., Canggu, Seminyak, Ubud) Inadequate reinvestment of tourism revenues into public infrastructure Fragmented governance and regulatory asymmetry across regencies Resident alienation and diminishing pride in place What the WTTC proposes is highly relevant: ✅ Build a multi-sector Destination Stewardship Body with real mandates ✅ Co-create a shared destination vision, aligned with both residents and investors ✅ Deploy data-led visitor management and crowd-monitoring systems ✅ Ring-fence and transparently reinvest tourism taxes into mobility, waste, water, and culture ✅ Empower residents through meaningful participation and pride-of-place programming This isn’t about saying “no” to growth — it’s about saying “yes” to resilience, regeneration, and recalibration. 🔎 Bali can — and must — avoid the trap of simplistic solutions like blanket moratoriums or tourism taxes that are never reinvested. Instead, we need what this report calls “evidence-based governance” and a long-overdue pivot from destination marketing to destination management. 📣 As an advisor engaged across Bali’s tourism corridors and a proponent of a value-over-volume model, I urge our public, private, and community stakeholders to treat this report as a blueprint. Let’s not wait for the tipping point to act. Let’s make stewardship Bali’s new signature. Check out the report at: https://lnkd.in/g_Q9jUve #Bali2030 #TourismStrategy #DestinationStewardship #WTTC #SustainableTourism #ResilientDestinations #VisitorEconomy #ValueOverVolume #DataDrivenDecisions #HospitalityStrategy

It's time to stop saying OVERTOURISM. Two weeks on a "grand tour" in Italy, from Milan to Naples, will teach you many things. For one, gelato is great at any time. But more importantly, it forces you to confront a term that’s been floating around travel discourse for years: overtourism. It’s a phrase I think we need to retire. Not because crowds in Amalfi aren’t real (oh, they very much are) but because the word frames tourism as the villain. That’s short-sighted. Tourism is how we build bridges between cultures. It’s how we learn that “different” is not “wrong.” It’s how we see, in real life, that another culture can have an entirely different set of priorities and still be thriving. Note: This is an excerpt from my free newsletter: https://lnkd.in/ehPnMgig The problem isn’t that there are too many tourists. The problem is that they’re all in the same places at the same time. Ten minutes by boat from Amalfi is Minori: a beautiful beach town, relaxed, friendly, with a mix of Italians and international visitors. No gridlock, no cruise ships offloading thousands. Meanwhile, Amalfi is bursting at the seams, largely because of its branding success. This is a distribution issue, and it’s solvable. We already have the tools: AI, data platforms, and smart content targeting, that can guide visitors toward equally great but lesser-known destinations. Imagine dynamic recommendations that push travelers to nearby towns during peak hours, or highlight festivals in neighboring villages. Instead of funneling everyone to the “top 5” list TripAdvisor’s algorithm happens to love, we could design systems that spread demand across a region. AI can make this smarter. Predictive models could anticipate crowd surges, reroute tour buses, or package itineraries that combine headline destinations with hidden gems. That’s good for local economies, good for visitor experience, and good for preserving what makes these places worth visiting in the first place. So let’s stop saying “overtourism” as if the solution is fewer people experiencing the world. As I keep saying (and strongly believe) tourism fuels economies, deepens cultural understanding, and makes the world a little less “us versus them.” The challenge is not demand: it’s distribution. Call it “under-distributed tourism,” “tourism bottlenecking,” “Destination imbalance,” or something catchier, but let’s make the conversation about balancing the distribution, not blaming the people who are going out of their way to see other cultures. Because yes, Amalfi for an afternoon by boat is delightful. But so is Minori for three days. The world (and Italy) has more than enough beauty to go around.

Food Safety is Everyone’s Responsibility! Let’s build a safer, healthier future—one meal at a time! Why is food safety so important? Every dish that leaves the kitchen carries more than just flavor—it carries trust, hygiene, and responsibility. Whether you’re working in a commercial kitchen, food manufacturing plant, or managing a home-based food business, maintaining food safety isn’t just about compliance—it’s about protecting lives. That’s why I created this Ultimate Food Safety Checklist! It’s your go-to guide to keeping food safe, clean, and compliant at every step—from storage to serving. Here’s what’s inside: 1. Personal Hygiene 🧼 Wash hands properly 👕 Wear clean clothing & aprons ✂️ Keep nails short & clean ❌ Avoid working when sick 🙅♀️ Don’t touch your face while prepping food 2. Cleaning & Sanitizing 🧽 Sanitize surfaces, utensils, and tools 🔪 Use separate boards for meats & veggies 🍎 Wash all fruits & veggies thoroughly ♨️ Hot soapy water is your best friend 3. Safe Food Storage ❄️ Fridge ≤ 4°C | Freezer ≤ -18°C 🥩 Store raw meat in leak-proof containers 🗂️ Label & date leftovers 🔥 Keep food away from heat sources 4. Temperature Control 🌡️ Use a food thermometer 🍗 Poultry: 74°C | 🥩 Ground Meat: 71°C | 🐟 Seafood: 63°C ⏲️ Never leave food out >2 hours 🔥 Hot food ≥ 60°C | ❄️ Cold food ≤ 4°C 5. Cross-Contamination Prevention ⚠️ Keep raw & cooked foods separate 🧤 Use gloves & discard after raw food use 🧼 Wash hands after handling raw meat 6. Defrosting 🧊 Thaw in fridge, cold water (changed every 30 min), or microwave 🚫 Never thaw on the counter 7. Food Preparation 👨🍳 Stir for even cooking 🥘 Avoid overcrowding pans 🍱 Use shallow containers for cooling 8. Food Handling 🚫 Don’t eat/drink in prep areas 🥄 Use utensils or gloves ♻️ Discard expired/spoiled food 9. Pest Control 🐜 Keep food areas crumb-free 🛑 Store food in sealed containers 🔍 Regular pest inspections 10. Allergen Awareness ⚠️ Label allergens clearly 📚 Train staff on allergen control 11. Waste Management 🗑️ Clean bins regularly 🚮 Keep trash away from food areas 12. Employee Training 📖 Train staff regularly on food safety ✅ Ensure compliance with local laws ⸻ Because one small mistake in food handling can lead to BIG consequences… but one trained, responsible person can prevent them all! Let’s make food safety more than a checklist—let’s make it a culture! Stay safe, serve safe, and lead with responsibility! ⸻ #FoodSafetyFirst #HACCPLevel4 #CleanKitchen #FoodHandling #MicrobiologyInAction #SafeFoodMatters #PublicHealth #KitchenProtocols #ComplianceReady #FoodSafetyCulture #SafeStorage #SanitationMatters #GloveUp #NoCrossContamination #AllergenControl #TemperatureControl #ISO22000 #BRCGS #FSSAI #FSSC22000 #TrainToMaintain #FSMS #ServeWithCare #FoodSafetyWarrior #PreventDontRegret #FoodIndustryStandards #LinkedInLearning #HealthyHabitsHealthyLives #FoodHygieneAwareness

🚨 Ethical Hacking | Responsible Disclosure | Payment Security 🔒 While performing an independent security assessment on a major hotel booking engine used by 3,000+ hotels across multiple regions, I identified a critical price tampering vulnerability affecting thousands of listings across the platform’s network. 💡 Summary of Discovery: During the booking process, I found that the system was trusting client-side inputs, allowing attackers to modify the payable amount and confirm bookings at any desired price. By intercepting the booking request and altering the amount (for example, from ₹5565 to ₹1), the transaction was still processed successfully exposing a severe flaw in payment integrity across thousands of listings. ⚙️ Technical Insight: Payment and booking APIs were accepting manipulated requests Server-side validation was missing for critical fields like amount and hotel_id This vulnerability could lead to large-scale financial losses and fraudulent bookings ✅ Responsible Action Taken: I immediately reported the findings to the platform’s security team through a coordinated disclosure process, sharing: Detailed proof-of-concept (PoC) and logs Technical recommendations to fix the issue, including: • Server-side validation for price integrity • Request signing (HMAC or token-based validation) • Payment callback verification • Monitoring and alerting for abnormal payment activity 💬 The vulnerability has been responsibly disclosed with no exploitation, data access, or service disruption involved. My goal was purely to enhance platform security and prevent future abuse. 🌍 Responsible disclosure protects both users and businesses. Every vulnerability fixed is one less opportunity for attackers. #CyberSecurity #EthicalHacking #ResponsibleDisclosure #BugBounty #AppSec #InfoSec #WebSecurity #PaymentSecurity #VulnerabilityResearch

Food Technologist’s Story from the Street to Safety 🍳 Must Watch Interesting Insight🔥🔥🔥 I stopped for a moment watching this egg cooking machine in action. . Multiple eggs cooking at the same time, fast service, consistent heat a perfect example of how simple equipment supports high-volume food operations. But as a Food Technologist, my mind doesn’t stop at speed or taste. I look at hygiene, contamination control, and food safety. . This machine, made of food-grade stainless steel, already gives a strong safety advantage. Its smooth surface reduces bacterial attachment, and the separate cavities help minimize cross-contamination. High cooking temperatures ensure proper egg coagulation, lowering the risk of pathogens like Salmonella. I noticed glove usage and limited hand contact a small step, but a critical GMP practice. However, food safety doesn’t end there. Egg residue, oil buildup, and improper cleaning can quickly turn safe equipment into a contamination risk if regular sanitization is ignored. One important clarification many people miss: 👉 This machine is only for cooking eggs. It does not blanch or dehydrate those are entirely different unit operations requiring separate equipment. My takeaway? Equipment doesn’t make food safe process control does. When proper cleaning, temperature control, and basic hygiene practices are followed, even street-style setups can align closely with food safety principles. Food safety isn’t complicated it’s about awareness, discipline, and responsibility. #FoodTechnologist #FoodSafety #GMP #HygienePractices #StreetFoodSafety #QualityMatters #FoodIndustry #Egg #Food #QualityControl #QualityAssurance #Haccp #compliance #qualitymanagement #Cleaning #cooking #chef #Insightful #cfbr