Choice Hotels Suffers Data Breach Exposing Franchisee and Applicant Information
Choice Hotels recently disclosed a data breach affecting franchisees and franchise applicants after a third-party actor accessed a company application on January 14, 2026. The incident prompted an internal investigation to assess the scope of unauthorized access and potential data exposure.
The breach may have compromised sensitive personal information, including names, Social Security numbers, contact details, and dates of birth. The exact data exposed varies by individual, and Choice Hotels is still determining the full extent of the impact.
On February 19, 2026, the company began notifying affected individuals via mail, providing details on the exposed information and offering complimentary credit monitoring services. The breach notice was filed with the Attorney General of Vermont, where regulatory disclosures are publicly available.
Source: https://straussborrelli.com/2026/02/23/choice-hotels-international-data-breach-investigation/
Choice Hotels TPRM report: https://www.rankiteo.com/company/choice-hotels-international
"id": "cho1771974638",
"linkid": "choice-hotels-international",
"type": "Breach",
"date": "2/2026",
"severity": "85",
"impact": "4",
"explanation": "Attack with significant impact with customers data leaks"{'affected_entities': [{'customers_affected': 'Franchisees and franchise '
'applicants',
'industry': 'Hospitality',
'name': 'Choice Hotels',
'type': 'Corporation'}],
'attack_vector': 'Third-party actor access to company application',
'customer_advisories': 'Notifying affected individuals via mail with details '
'on exposed information and complimentary credit '
'monitoring services',
'data_breach': {'personally_identifiable_information': 'Yes',
'sensitivity_of_data': 'High',
'type_of_data_compromised': ['Names',
'Social Security numbers',
'Contact details',
'Dates of birth']},
'date_detected': '2026-01-14',
'date_publicly_disclosed': '2026-02-19',
'description': 'Choice Hotels recently disclosed a data breach affecting '
'franchisees and franchise applicants after a third-party '
'actor accessed a company application on January 14, 2026. The '
'incident prompted an internal investigation to assess the '
'scope of unauthorized access and potential data exposure. The '
'breach may have compromised sensitive personal information, '
'including names, Social Security numbers, contact details, '
'and dates of birth. The exact data exposed varies by '
'individual, and Choice Hotels is still determining the full '
'extent of the impact.',
'impact': {'data_compromised': 'Sensitive personal information (names, Social '
'Security numbers, contact details, dates of '
'birth)',
'identity_theft_risk': 'High'},
'investigation_status': 'Ongoing',
'references': [{'source': 'Attorney General of Vermont'}],
'regulatory_compliance': {'regulatory_notifications': 'Filed with the '
'Attorney General of '
'Vermont'},
'response': {'communication_strategy': 'Notifying affected individuals via '
'mail, providing details on exposed '
'information and offering '
'complimentary credit monitoring '
'services'},
'threat_actor': 'Third-party actor',
'title': 'Choice Hotels Data Breach Exposing Franchisee and Applicant '
'Information',
'type': 'Data Breach'}