Breach Brief: British Airways falls victim to frequent-flyer hack


A recent cyber attack has compromised thousands of frequent-flyer accounts.


British Airways has become the latest high-profile brand to fall victim to a large-scale hack. The company confirmed on Sunday that a security breach affected tens of thousands of its users’ frequent-flyer accounts.

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How did it happen? According to reports, British Airways doesn’t know who hacked the system but believes that the attack could have been carried out by an automated computer program that might have been looking for vulnerabilities in the company’s online security systems.

Who did it affect? The airline acknowledged the issue and highlighted that the problem has impacted only a small number of customers out of its millions of customers worldwide. However, British Airways has temporarily frozen affected accounts; subsequently, some travelers may not be able to use their earned miles at this time.

What they’re saying: “British Airways has become aware of some unauthorized activity in relation to a small number of frequent-flyer executive club accounts. This appears to have been the result of a third party using information obtained elsewhere on the internet, via an automated process, to try to gain access to some accounts. We would like to reassure customers that at this stage we are not aware of any access to any subsequent information pages within accounts, including travel histories or payment-card details.”

This latest high-profile incident comes amid growing concerns that even the most trusted sites and systems can be used by hackers aimed at infiltrating sensitive industries. Thus, it is becoming increasingly clear that embedded insecurity affects everyone and every company. With the number of breaches on the rise and no apparent end in sight, how can you ensure that your network is protected?

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