Australian Airline Qantas Hit By Cyberattack, Exposing Data Of 6 Million Customers

Australia’s flagship airline, Qantas, has been hit by a cyberattack that exposed the data of approximately 6 million customers. The airline confirmed the incident on Wednesday and assured the public that it has been contained and that flight operations have not been affected.

According to Qantas’ announcement, a few days ago, a cybercriminal gained access to a third-party platform used by its contact center. The company noticed unusual activity on Monday and took immediate action to contain the breach. However, it estimates that the records of around 6 million customers have been compromised.

“We understand this will be concerning for customers,” wrote Qantas. “We are currently contacting customers to make them aware of the incident, apologise, and provide details on the support available.”

Qantas is investigating the incident and noted that sensitive information such as names and addresses were exposed, but that bank details and passport IDs were not stored in the system hacked.

“We are continuing to investigate the proportion of the data that has been stolen, though we expect it will be significant,” states the document. “An initial review has confirmed the data includes some customers’ names, email addresses, phone numbers, birth dates and frequent flyer numbers.”

The airline explained that credit card numbers, PINs, log-in details, and passport details were not disclosed.

Qantas has notified local authorities, including the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner, the Australian Cyber Security Centre, and the Australian Federal Police.

The airline notified customers affected by the breach and provided a dedicated customer support line on its websites to share the latest updates and assist passengers affected.

“We sincerely apologise to our customers and we recognise the uncertainty this will cause. Our customers trust us with their personal information and we take that responsibility seriously,” said Vanessa Hudson, Qantas Group Chief Executive Officer.

Just a few days ago, Hawaiian Airlines also announced it has been targeted by a cyberattack affecting its IT systems.

While both incidents remain under investigation and the identities of the attackers have not been disclosed, the FBI recently warned about the cybercrime group Scattered Spider targeting the airline sector.