Crow call: Hackers target Russian airline

Pro-Ukraine computer hackers have hit Russia airline Aeroflot.

The Russian flag carrier was forced to cancel numerous flights this week after hackers launched a cyberattack, Travel Mole reported.

The Silent Crow group claimed responsibility as dozens of Aeroflot flights were cancelled on Monday.

“We declare the successful completion of a prolonged and large-scale operation, as a result of which the internal IT infrastructure of Aeroflot was completely compromised and destroyed,” Silent Crow wrote on Telegram. “Glory to Ukraine” Long live Belarus!”

The hackers said that a year-long infiltration of Aeroflot’s systems allowed them to steal 20 terabytes of data and destroy 7,000 servers.

There was some disruption to virtually all the airline's IT systems causing major flight schedule changes.

"Customers may encounter issues when accessing our services,” the airline said.

“We kindly ask passengers to monitor real-time updates on airport websites, information displays, and public announcements across the route network.”

Aeroflot's IT teams were "actively working to minimise the impact on flight operations and restore all services to as quickly as possible"

Both the Kremlin and the Russian Prosecutor General confirmed the cyberattack and a criminal investigation was launched.

Silent Crow said its motivation for the attack was Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Qantas hit by cyber attack

Qantas has hit data turbulence after “a cyber incident”.

Around six million customers of the Australian airline have potentially been affected after the attack occurred in one of its contact centres in Manila, impacting customer data. The dangers of outsourcing to save money. 

“We understand this will be concerning for customers,” the airline said in a media statement. “We are currently contacting customers to make them aware of the incident, apologise and provide details on the support available.”

The incident occurred when a cyber criminal targeted a call centre and gained access to a third party customer servicing platform.

There is no impact to Qantas’ operations or the safety of the airline.

Importantly, credit card details, personal financial information and passport details are not held in this system, Qantas said. No frequent flyer accounts were compromised nor have passwords, PIN numbers or log in details been accessed.

Qantas has notified the Australian Cyber Security Centre and the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner.

Given the criminal nature of this incident, the Australian Federal Police has also been notified.

Qantas Group Chief Executive Officer Vanessa Hudson said: “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.

“We are contacting our customers today and our focus is on providing them with the necessary support.

“We are working closely with the Federal Government’s National Cyber Security Coordinator, the Australian Cyber Security Centre and independent specialised cyber security experts.”

Bizarrely, Hudson later declined to talk the media. Not a good look.