Booking.com Under EU Probe: European Commission Opens DSA Proceedings Over Fake Listings, Phishing Scams

The European Commission on October 21 opened formal proceedings against Booking.com to assess whether the travel platform breached the European Union's Digital Services Act (DSA), with the investigation focusing on whether the company adequately assessed and reduced the risks arising from fraudulent accommodation listings and phishing scams. The probe also covers whether paid-for listings were clearly marked as advertisements, and the Commission will continue to gather evidence and assess the platform's compliance as the case moves forward.

The scrutiny comes as concerns over online travel fraud keep growing. Booking.com itself has reported a 500% rise in scam activity between 2022 and 2024.

Booking.com's Scale in Europe

According to figures cited by the Commission, around 66% of online hotel reservations in Europe are made through Booking.com. That reach is why the platform is treated as a Very Large Online Platform under the DSA, which requires such services to identify, analyse and mitigate systemic risks affecting users. The law also mandates clear disclosure of advertisements. Truecaller Scam Checker: Know How Does This New Feature Work to Detect Fraud?

What the Commission Will Examine

The investigation will focus on three key areas.

1. Fraudulent and non-compliant listings: The Commission will look at risks linked to fake accommodation listings, including non-existent properties, impersonation fraud and other non-compliant offers on the platform.

2. Phishing scams linked to reservation data: The probe will examine claims that malicious actors may have accessed and misused reservation and guest data. Such information could be used to launch phishing attacks and ask travellers for fraudulent payments.

3. Sponsored listings and ad transparency: The Commission will check whether boosted listings, where providers paid for better visibility in search results, were clearly identified as advertisements. Under the DSA, users should be able to easily recognise sponsored content, know who paid for it and understand why it is being shown to them. The Commission says Booking.com may have fallen short on these transparency requirements.

If the allegations are substantiated, the failures would amount to infringements of the DSA.

Social Media Reactions

The announcement drew mixed reactions online. One user wrote, 'Thanks for this, very important personal vindication for me as someone who'd never gotten scammed until this summer through Booking.' Another commented, 'The EU standing up against digital behemoths to protect its citizens.'

A third user said, 'Good initiative. The platform is full of hotels which are blatant scams.' A fourth claimed, 'Sometimes they use 4 or 5 layers of subcontractors to put responsibility on others.' Not everyone shared these experiences, with one user asking, 'I never had a bad experience with them. Can anyone tell me what's happening?'

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Oct 22, 2026 02:58 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).