providers fail to comply with these laws and regulations or experience a significant breach of customer, employee, vendor, franchisee or other company data, our reputation could be damaged and result in an increase in service charges, suspension of service, lost sales, fines or lawsuits.
The use of credit card payment systems makes us more susceptible to a risk of loss in connection with these issues, particularly with respect to an external security breach of customer information that we or third parties (including those with whom we have strategic alliances) under arrangements with us control. Significant portions of our sales require the collection of certain customer data, such as credit card information. In order for our sales channel to function, we and other parties involved in processing customer transactions must be able to transmit confidential information, including credit card information, securely over public networks. In the event of a security breach, theft, leakage, accidental release or other illegal activity with respect to employee, customer, or vendor with whom we have strategic alliances or other company data, we could become subject to various claims, including those arising out of thefts and fraudulent transactions, and may also result in the suspension of credit card services. This could cause consumers to lose confidence in our security measures, harm our reputation as well as divert management attention and expose us to potentially unreserved claims and litigation. Any loss in connection with these types of claims could be substantial. In addition, if our electronic payment systems are damaged or cease to function properly, we may have to make significant investments to fix or replace them, and we may suffer interruptions in our operations in the interim. In addition, we are reliant on these systems, not only to protect the security of the information stored, but also to appropriately track and record data. Any failures or inadequacies in these systems could expose us to significant unreserved losses, which could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. Our brand reputation would likely be damaged as well.
Our business is subject to the risks of earthquakes, fires, floods, climate change and other natural catastrophic events and to interruption byman-made problems such as computer viruses or terrorism.
Our systems and operations are vulnerable to damage or interruption from earthquakes, fires, floods, power losses, telecommunications failures, terrorist attacks, acts of war, human errors,break-ins or similar events. A significant natural disaster, such as an earthquake, fire or flood, could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. Our insurance coverage may be insufficient to compensate us for losses that may occur. Our principal executive offices are located in Southern California, a region known for seismic activity. In addition, acts of terrorism could also cause disruptions in our business or the economy as a whole. We rely heavily on servers, computers, communications systems and the Internet to conduct our business and provide high quality service to our listeners. Our servers may be vulnerable to cybersecurity risks such as computer viruses andbreak-ins. Disruptions in these services could negatively impact our ability to run our business, result in the loss of existing or potential listeners, the loss of existing or potential advertisers and increase maintenance costs, each of which could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. To date, we have not experienced significant disruptions in running our business due to catastrophic events, climate change, earthquakes, computer viruses or terrorism. Although we did not incur significant disruptions to our operations, our Houston market was impacted by Hurricane Harvey and our Tampa and Orlando markets were impacted by Hurricane Irma in 2017.
ACQUISITIONS AND CAPITAL INVESTMENTS
We may be unable to integrate the operations and management of acquired stations or businesses, which could adversely affect our business and operating results.
Acquisitions may have a substantial impact on our revenues, costs, cash flows, and financial position. We spent $11.2 and $4.0 million on acquisitions during the years ended December 31, 2018 and 2017, respectively. We expect to make additional acquisitions of radio stations, FM transmitters, digital businesses and publishing businesses. Acquisitions involve risks and uncertainties, including difficulties in integrating acquired operations and in realizing expected opportunities; diversions of management resources and loss of key employees;
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