Staff Risks – Hiring the Wrong Barback Might Cost You Your Customer Data: Insider Threats You’re Overlooking

 

 

In the hospitality industry, frontline hiring decisions are often made quickly which can lead to staff risks.

With high turnover rates and an urgent need to keep operations running smoothly, many restaurants and bars prioritize immediate availability and attitude over digital literacy or background scrutiny.

While this makes short-term sense, there is a hidden cost: insider threats that extend far beyond stolen liquor or a botched drink order.

Today, customer data, POS systems, staff scheduling tools, and even building security are tied to digital ecosystems.

A bad hiring decision — even at the barback level — can expose vulnerabilities that most managers haven’t considered.

The hospitality sector has become a high-value target for low-effort digital breaches. And in many cases, those breaches begin inside the building.

 

How to descrease staff risks & avoid data breaches

 

1. The digital surface area of a bar or restaurant
2. Insider threats aren’t always malicious — but they’re always risky
3. What makes bars and restaurants appealing targets?
4. The role of leadership: hiring with security in mind
5. Digital hygiene: low-cost, high-impact safeguards
6. When an insider becomes an outsider
7. Conclusion: rethinking “low-level” staff risk

 

1. The digital surface area of a bar or restaurant

 

Modern hospitality operations involve a surprisingly large digital footprint:

– POS terminals connected to cloud accounts
– Guest Wi-Fi networks
– Third-party booking and ordering apps
– Staff management and payroll software
– Inventory systems tied to suppliers

While managers may lock down access to payroll or vendor accounts, few restrict physical or casual access to POS screens, shift schedules, or shared tablets.

 

 

Many small businesses run systems that auto-login or have shared passwords.

In this environment, even a new hire in a supporting role like a barback can quickly gain indirect access to sensitive systems.

Whether through observation, shoulder-surfing, or simple trial-and-error, a malicious or careless employee can compromise far more than a drawer of cash.

One case involved discovering a keylogger on my Mac used for updating menu templates — a breach that originated from an unsupervised work terminal accessible to junior staff.

 

2. Insider threats aren’t always malicious — but they’re always risky

 

Not every insider threat is intentional.

Many originate from employees who don’t understand the risks of their actions. Consider these common behaviors:

– Using personal USB drives or phones on work devices
– Saving passwords in browsers that others can access
– Connecting to insecure Wi-Fi networks in or near the premises
– Using shared devices to check personal email or download apps

These habits, while seemingly harmless, can lead to malware infections, unintentional credential leaks, or even remote access breaches.

Hospitality environments are fast-paced and informal. That cultural informality creates prime conditions for overlooked digital vulnerabilities.

3. What makes bars and restaurants appealing targets?

 

While massive data breaches at banks or tech firms make headlines, hospitality venues present an easier, quieter opportunity for attackers. The reasons are simple:

1. Low security awareness
2. High employee churn
3. Use of third-party platforms that store customer data
4. Minimal cybersecurity training or infrastructure
5. Shared access points and logins

A rogue employee — or one working with an external actor — can siphon off customer payment data, loyalty program information, or even vendor credentials.

 

 

Bars and restaurants often integrate multiple services for reservations, orders, inventory, and staffing.

These interlinked systems can be compromised through a single point of failure, such as an unattended, unlocked tablet.

 

4. The role of leadership – hiring with security in mind

 

To reduce insider threats, the hiring process itself must evolve.

While background checks for senior staff or cash-handling positions are becoming more common, few venues apply the same rigor to supporting roles.

Yet these employees often have unsupervised access during off-peak hours or closing shifts.

 

 

Best practices include:

– Reference verification, even for junior staff
– Clear policies about digital access and use of personal devices
– Role-based access control — ensure barbacks don’t have POS admin access
– Mandatory basic cybersecurity training during onboarding
– Written expectations on what systems may and may not be used

Security must be treated as a team-wide responsibility. Every staff member should understand that physical access translates into digital exposure.

5. Digital hygiene: low-cost, high-impact safeguards

 

Small hospitality businesses often lack the budget for IT staff, but that doesn’t mean they’re helpless.

A few baseline safeguards can dramatically reduce staff risks:

– Two-factor authentication (2FA) on all cloud accounts
– Time-based auto-locking of POS terminals and shared devices
– Unique logins for every staff member with access to any system
– Network segmentation, separating staff devices from customer Wi-Fi
– Regular device audits, checking for unauthorized software or changes

These steps create friction for would-be attackers and provide a paper trail for investigations if something does go wrong.

6. When an insider becomes an outsider

 

One of the most common — and dangerous — scenarios occurs when a staff member leaves, but their access remains.

Especially in small operations, managers forget to disable logins, reset shared passwords, or remove device permissions.

This oversight can lead to months of undetected access.

 

 

Former staff with unresolved grievances may see an opportunity to settle scores, or simply exploit a leftover credential to make money selling customer data or vendor logins on underground forums.

An exit checklist should always include:

– Disabling all access immediately after departure
– Recovering or wiping any devices used
– Changing shared credentials
– Notifying third-party vendors if any permissions need to be revoked

7. Conclusion: rethinking “low-level” staff risk

 

In hospitality, every hire represents a trust decision.

While roles like barback, runner, or dishwasher are traditionally viewed as operationally low-risk, their physical access makes them digitally significant.

The cultural divide between operations and cybersecurity is no longer sustainable.

Security breaches rarely start with a full-frontal attack.

They start with access — physical or digital — and in hospitality, access is granted every time a new person walks through the employee entrance.

Protecting customer data doesn’t require enterprise-level infrastructure.

It requires awareness, smarter hiring, and treating every employee — regardless of rank — as a potential access point to something much bigger.