Qantas has become the latest airline targeted by cybercriminals, with hackers gaining access to one of its customer servicing platforms managed by a third-party operator.
The Australian carrier confirmed on Wednesday that the attack, first detected on Monday, has been contained but is expected to have exposed a significant amount of customer data. The compromised information includes names, email addresses, phone numbers, birth dates, and frequent flyer numbers of up to 6 million customers. However, the airline assured that no credit card, personal financial, or passport details were stored on the affected platform, and frequent flyer accounts and passwords remain secure.
This attack comes just days after the FBI warned of the cybercriminal group Scattered Spider targeting the airline sector, though no formal links have been established between this group and the Qantas breach. Recent victims in the industry also include Hawaiian Airlines and WestJet.
Qantas apologized to customers for the incident, acknowledging the uncertainty it causes, and said it is implementing additional security measures to strengthen system monitoring and detection as investigations continue.
