{
    "title": "Belgian newspaper exposes Airbnb verification weakness",
    "modified_at": "2026-06-24 10:33:48",
    "published_at": "2026-06-24 06:54:00",
    "url": "https://belganewsagency-eu.prezly.com/belgian-newspaper-exposes-airbnb-verification-weakness",
    "short_url": "http://prez.ly/MxJd",
    "culture": "en_BE",
    "language": "EN",
    "slug": "belgian-newspaper-exposes-airbnb-verification-weakness",
    "body": "<p><strong>Belgian newspaper De Standaard has revealed serious weaknesses in Airbnb&rsquo;s identity verification system after successfully creating a fake host profile in the name of prime minister Bart De Wever.</strong></p><p>As part of an investigation into Airbnb listings in Belgium, journalists created an Airbnb account using the prime minister&rsquo;s name and photo. They then listed 16 Rue de la Loi (Wetstraat 16), the official residence and office address of the prime minister in Brussels, as a holiday rental for 150 euros per night.</p><p>The property, advertised as the &ldquo;Law Street Lodge&rdquo;, remained online for nearly two months and received several booking requests. The newspaper rejected all requests and did not accept any guests.</p><p>According to De Standaard, Airbnb&rsquo;s verification process approved the fake profile within minutes, despite the use of a false identity and a highly recognisable government address.</p><p>After the newspaper informed Airbnb about the experiment, the company removed the listing and suspended the account. Airbnb said fake profiles were rare and confirmed it had launched an internal investigation. The company also noted that hosts only receive payment 24 hours after a guest checks in, which helps protect users from fraud.</p><p>However, Airbnb did not explain how the fake profile passed its verification checks or why the listing remained online for so long.</p><p>The investigation raises questions about the reliability of Airbnb&rsquo;s identity verification system and the presence of other potentially false profiles on the platform.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><sup>Wetstraat 16, or 16 Rue de la Loi, the offices of the prime minister &copy; BELGA PHOTO NICOLAS MAETERLINCK</sup></p><hr /><p><strong>Related news</strong></p><div id=\"bookmark-e5f63b67-277c-4347-8ee6-cdced3eb5c96\"\n     class=\"release-content-bookmark release-content-bookmark--horizontal\">\n\n            <a class=\"release-content-bookmark__thumbnail\"\n           href=\"http://prez.ly/KErd\"\n           rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"\n           target=\"_blank\"           style=\"background-image: url(https://prezly.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.uc.assets.prezly.com%2F4623a7d3-4392-40ba-a844-14aed2943a81%2F-%2Fpreview%2F600x600%2F?ar=1%3A1&amp;fit=crop&amp;s=d562f734cdf15a4d8730f4c13f1ca87b)\"\n        ></a>\n    \n    <div class=\"release-content-bookmark__details\">\n\n                    <a class=\"release-content-bookmark__title\"\n               href=\"http://prez.ly/KErd\"\n               rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"\n               target=\"_blank\"               data-type=\"bookmark\"\n               data-track=\"Story WebBookmark Click\"\n               data-placement=\"content\"\n               data-id=\"e5f63b67-277c-4347-8ee6-cdced3eb5c96\"\n           >\n                10,000 European hotels sue Booking.com over unfair pricing practices            </a>\n        \n                    <div class=\"release-content-bookmark__description\">\n                More than 10,000 hotels across Europe have joined a class action lawsuit against Dutch-based Booking.com, demanding compensation for years of...            </div>\n        \n        <a href=\"https://www.belganewsagency.eu/\"\n           target=\"_blank\"\n           rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"\n           class=\"release-content-bookmark__provider\"\n        >\n            <img class=\"release-content-bookmark__provider-icon\" src=\"https://avatars.prezly.com/favicon?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.belganewsagency.eu%2Fover-10000-european-hotels-sue-bookingcom-over-unfair-pricing-practices&newsroom=6b71e247-a9ba-4732-aaa3-88be14c119db\" aria-hidden=\"true\" />\n            belganewsagency.eu        </a>\n    </div>\n</div>\n<div id=\"bookmark-ddb1bccf-be92-4a66-a8eb-d6097e185710\"\n     class=\"release-content-bookmark release-content-bookmark--horizontal\">\n\n            <a class=\"release-content-bookmark__thumbnail\"\n           href=\"http://prez.ly/wVBd\"\n           rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"\n           target=\"_blank\"           style=\"background-image: url(https://prezly.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.uc.assets.prezly.com%2F4ef387bd-c3cf-4a76-b44f-817e0b127089%2F-%2Fpreview%2F600x600%2F?ar=1%3A1&amp;fit=crop&amp;s=411c542caab35b36cad5e985b9413686)\"\n        ></a>\n    \n    <div class=\"release-content-bookmark__details\">\n\n                    <a class=\"release-content-bookmark__title\"\n               href=\"http://prez.ly/wVBd\"\n               rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"\n               target=\"_blank\"               data-type=\"bookmark\"\n               data-track=\"Story WebBookmark Click\"\n               data-placement=\"content\"\n               data-id=\"ddb1bccf-be92-4a66-a8eb-d6097e185710\"\n           >\n                Hackers gained access to customer data from both Basic-Fit and Booking.com            </a>\n        \n                    <div class=\"release-content-bookmark__description\">\n                Hackers have gained access to customer data from both the fitness chain Basic-Fit and the travel platform Booking.com. At Basic-Fit, this involves...            </div>\n        \n        <a href=\"https://www.belganewsagency.eu/\"\n           target=\"_blank\"\n           rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"\n           class=\"release-content-bookmark__provider\"\n        >\n            <img class=\"release-content-bookmark__provider-icon\" src=\"https://avatars.prezly.com/favicon?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.belganewsagency.eu%2Fhackers-gained-access-to-customer-data-from-both-basic-fit-and-bookingcom&newsroom=6b71e247-a9ba-4732-aaa3-88be14c119db\" aria-hidden=\"true\" />\n            belganewsagency.eu        </a>\n    </div>\n</div>\n",
    "header": {
        "large": "https://cdn.uc.assets.prezly.com/160a35e1-3f3c-494a-8dea-f2cc48c83742/-/preview/1200x1200/-/format/auto/",
        "release": "https://cdn.uc.assets.prezly.com/160a35e1-3f3c-494a-8dea-f2cc48c83742/-/preview/1200x1200/-/format/auto/"
    },
    "links": [
        {
            "description": "10,000 European hotels sue Booking.com over unfair pricing practices",
            "url": "http://prez.ly/KErd"
        },
        {
            "description": "Hackers gained access to customer data from both Basic-Fit and Booking.com",
            "url": "http://prez.ly/wVBd"
        }
    ],
    "author": {
        "first_name": "Flanders",
        "last_name": "News Service"
    },
    "format_version": 5
}