AI News Feed
Market watch
LG UltraFine Evo 32U990A-S Hits Record-Low $1,099 on Amazon, TechRadar ReportsNewegg Labor Day Deal: 32GB Kingston Fury Beast DDR4-3200 Kit Nearly Half Price at $179.99 with CodeGalaxy Z Fold 8 inner screen corners reported with excessive giveHuawei unveils Mate XT 2 tri-fold with privacy-screen edition as Apple prepares folding iPhoneWall Street Analysts Recommend Nvidia, Uber and Marvell for Long-Term GrowthLenovo, AMD and Huawei Put Local Large-Model AI at Center of New Devices
LG UltraFine Evo 32U990A-S Hits Record-Low $1,099 on Amazon, TechRadar ReportsNewegg Labor Day Deal: 32GB Kingston Fury Beast DDR4-3200 Kit Nearly Half Price at $179.99 with CodeGalaxy Z Fold 8 inner screen corners reported with excessive giveHuawei unveils Mate XT 2 tri-fold with privacy-screen edition as Apple prepares folding iPhoneWall Street Analysts Recommend Nvidia, Uber and Marvell for Long-Term GrowthLenovo, AMD and Huawei Put Local Large-Model AI at Center of New Devices
Cybersecurity

Fake 10 Downing Street listing on Booking.com highlights security failures

Consumer researchers created a fake 10 Downing Street listing on Booking.com and processed payment, exposing alleged systemic security failures.

AI News Feed · 2026-09-02 18:50

The listing, advertised as a “1 bedroom apartment in the heart of London” with the exact address and a photo of the prime minister’s residence, was posted on 18 June by researchers from the consumer watchdog Which?. The property was set up so that users had to request a stay rather than book and pay automatically. Which? said the site still processed a payment for a one-week stay, and the money had not been refunded more than six weeks later.

The researchers also uploaded a fake review describing the stay as “exceptional” and saying they enjoyed spending time with Larry the cat, Downing Street’s resident feline. Which? said Booking.com sent a message indicating the review would be checked by moderators, but it appeared almost immediately. The team used Booking.com’s internal messaging system to send an external URL asking a representative for credit card details to confirm the booking. Which? said the company claimed it could block such URLs if it suspected fraudulent activity but did not do so in this case.

The listing was removed on 27 August. Rory Boland, editor of Which? Travel, said: “If Booking.com’s so-called sophisticated AI systems can’t spot that 10 Downing Street is not a holiday rental, then it’s no wonder scammers can exploit the platform so easily.” The watchdog urged Ofcom, the UK’s communications regulator, to investigate what it called systemic failures.

A Booking.com spokesperson said the “limited test” was not a true reflection of the experience of millions of listings on its platform, noting the property added by Which? was not visible to customers or “live” for the time period referenced. “We use a range of checks, verification measures and artificial intelligence, which help us detect and remove the majority of fraudulent listings within 24 hours,” they said. The property was not open and bookable, they added, so some automatic fraud controls were not triggered.

An Ofcom spokesperson said platforms have legal duties to take down illegal content generated by users once they become aware of it. Booking.com is not currently covered by future rules regulating paid-for fraudulent advertising, the spokesperson said, and any change would be a matter for government.