Why is Brussels investigating Booking.com over fake holiday stays?

The European Commission has opened a formal case against Booking.com over whether it did enough against fake listings and phishing. The harm is real: El Pais reported hundreds of people booked stays in Madrid that did not exist.

Commission figures show 82000 euros of damage from 1072 fraud reports in the first half of the year. The Commission calls the rise a tenfold jump on the year before. One common scheme, an EU official says, is someone posing as a property owner, listing it and collecting payment.

Commission officials say Booking itself reports a 500 percent rise in fraud worldwide. Booking says it is cooperating fully, and no breach has been found yet. Next, the Commission can impose interim measures, issue a non-compliance decision, or accept commitments from Booking.