Posted on October 26, 2018 at 7:58 AM
Cathay Pacific Airways Confirm Data Breach of its Customers
Cathay Pacific announced its information system have been hacked without any breach to its flight operation system. The CEO stated that a proactive measure has been taken to protect the airline and its customers. Finally, he noted that its customers’ passwords are intact with their information not abused.
Cathay Pacific, one of Asia’s foremost airlines has been hacked according to the latest discovery. In a statement, the company stated that there has been a data breach with over 9.4 million customers’ information stolen. This data breach included 245,000 credit card numbers, 860,000 passport details, and 403 expired credit card numbers.
Cathay Pacific discovers data breach on its computer network
According to the company, the discovery of the hack was during the review of its IT security processes. During the review, it found someone had gained access into their information system and stole 9.4 million data of its customers. The suspicious activity was detected on its computer network in March but the confirmation of a data breach was announced in May. The data included the passenger’s names, phone number, date of birth, nationality, credit card details, passport number, identity card number, physical address, email, and information of when and how they traveled.
The company indicated that there hasn’t been any evidence that the personal information stolen has been misused. Furthermore, the hack hasn’t had any effect on the safety of its flight because its information system is separate from the flight operations system.
Rupert Hogg, CEO of Cathay Pacific said, “We are sorry for any concern this data security event may cause our passengers. We acted immediately to contain the event, commence a thorough investigation with the assistance of a leading cybersecurity firm, and to further strengthen our IT security measures.” Nevertheless, security experts have analyzed the incident and indicated that data in the wrong hands especially payment card information could spell huge impact on the part of the customers.
Previous Incidents of Airline Hack
The CEO further added that the company would reach out to the affected passengers informing them how to protect themselves against this breach. Additionally, no password was stolen neither was their information abused. This hack is among the series of attacks hitting different airline. Smaller hacks had taken place on Delta Airlines, British Airways, and Air Canada. During the British Airways hack about 380,000 sets of payment information were stolen. British Airway began an investigation into the incident and made relevant reports to the police.
Finally, Cathay Pacific Airways have informed its customers on the reported breach and directed them to make use of a dedicated website.
