Protecting Your Restaurant: Understanding Third-Party Cybersecurity Threats

Per the National Restaurant Association, 46 percent of restaurateurs reported a net increase in customer traffic from January 2024 to January 2025.

Also rising? Cybersecurity threats in the restaurant industry.

How Cybercriminals Exploit Third-Party Vendors to Attack Restaurants As online ordering continues to triumph and restaurants become more digital, opportunities for cybercriminals increase. To bolster your defenses, it’s important to look beyond your own digital footprint and consider your third-party vendors—and how hackers can use these connections to get to you.

Here are common third-party cybersecurity vulnerabilities and what restaurateurs can do to protect their businesses:

1. POS Vendors

Point-of-sale (POS) systems play an obviously foundational role in daily restaurant operations, making them a prime target for hackers looking to do damage. Plus, going after POS vendors instead of restaurants directly lets cybercriminals maximize damage: with just one…

Luke Vander Linden

Luke Vander Linden is Vice President of Membership and Market for the Retail and Hospitality Information Security andAnalysis Center (ISAC) and operates as a central hub for sharing sector-specific cyber security information and intelligence.

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Luke Vander Linden