justnorth posted on April 18, 2007 07:50 :: 1439 Views
InfoSpherix, the company that handles camping reservations for five states, including Minnesota, has notified Minnesota state park authorities that it is investigating possible credit card fraud at their call center in Carmel, Ind.
"InfoSpherix informed us April 11 about their rapid detection and containment of this incident,” said Chuck Kartak, deputy director of state parks for the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR). “The company also told us that their computer reservation and security system was not involved."
Although the investigation is ongoing, the early indication is that three to six Minnesota individuals may be affected. The alleged fraud appears to have involved several InfoSpherix employees who took phone reservations and were hired within the last month.
According to InfoSpherix Indiana Call Center General Manager Sue Clevenger, "This ongoing investigation has revealed possible credit card fraud from information that was revealed during verbal conversations with customers. An internal personnel matter has been dealt with immediately and details of the investigation have been turned over to the proper authorities."
Kartak said the DNR would cooperate with its vendor and law enforcement authorities in the investigation. "This is the first time our vendor has encountered such a problem, and they know that we have zero tolerance when it comes to anything less than total customer security,” he said. “We will be working with the company to notify any individuals whose personal data may have been compromised."
A centralized reservation system operated by private vendors has been used by state park campers since 1991, with online reservations added in 2001 so customers can reserve campsites or lodging facilities at Minnesota state parks 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
Concerned users who made a recent state park reservation may direct questions to Jeff Lowe, InfoSpherix, vice president of corporate communication at (301) 419-7835.
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