Data of millions of Qantas customers published months after hack

"Australian airline Qantas has confirmed that the personal data of 5.7 million customers has appeared online following a major cyberattack earlier this year. The data breach is part of a wider hack that affected dozens of international companies. Among the organizations affected are Disney, Google, IKEA, Toyota, McDonald's, Air France, and KLM. The attack targeted software provider Salesforce, with stolen information being used to demand ransom."

"According to Qantas, the data includes names, email addresses, phone numbers, dates of birth, and, in some cases, addresses, gender, and meal preferences. The airline emphasized that no credit card information, financial data, or passport numbers were stolen. Previous communications indicate that more than 1 million customers lost sensitive information, including phone numbers, dates of birth, and addresses. In comparison, another four million customers had only their names and email addresses stolen."

"To prevent further dissemination of the stolen data, Qantas obtained a court order from the New South Wales Supreme Court. This order prohibits third parties from viewing, publishing, or passing on the data. However, according to security researcher Troy Hunt, such a measure has little effect because it does not deter cybercriminals and has no legal validity outside Australia. The airline says it is working with external security experts to investigate exactly what information has been released."

Qantas confirmed that personal data for 5.7 million customers appeared online following a July cyberattack that was part of a larger breach affecting dozens of international firms. The attack targeted software provider Salesforce, and stolen information was reportedly used to demand ransom. Exposed data includes names, email addresses, phone numbers, dates of birth, and, in some cases, addresses, gender, and meal preferences. No credit card, financial, or passport details were taken. More than 1 million customers lost sensitive information, while around four million had only names and emails exposed. Qantas obtained a New South Wales court order and is working with external security experts. Security researcher Troy Hunt questioned the order’s effectiveness. Australian media named the hacker collective Scattered Lapsus$ Hunters as responsible, and the breach follows major 2022 incidents that prompted stricter digital resilience laws.

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