Major airports across England have been hit by a “cybersecurity incident” in which the data of about 8.7 million customers was accessed.
Manchester Airport Group (Mag), which operates Manchester Airport, London Stansted and East Midlands Airport, said “at no point has passenger safety or aviation security been compromised” during the incident.
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GB News understands the majority of the data accessed was restricted to customer email addresses and related to Wi-Fi sign-ups within the airports’ terminals.
Phone numbers, vehicle registration numbers and postcodes were also accessed during the hack, the company said, while operations at all three airports remained “unaffected”.
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The hackers demanded a ransom fee which was not paid, the company said. The ransom amount was not disclosed.
A Mag spokesperson said on Thursday: “Manchester Airports group has been subject to a cyber security incident by an unauthorised third party.
“A quantity of customer data has been obtained that relates to car park, lounge and fast track bookings and in-airport wifi sign-ups at Manchester, Stansted and East Midlands airports.
“We immediately contained the risk and have been working with specialist advisers and taking appropriate steps to protect our customers and systems.
“We have informed and are working with the relevant authorities. At no point has passenger safety or aviation security been compromised.”
The spokesman continued: “The incident has not resulted in any operational disruption. Airport operations remain unaffected and customer parking services continue to operate normally.
“Neither Mag nor the system accessed hold customers’ bank or payment details. The data that has been accessed includes customers’ email addresses, phone numbers, vehicle registrations and postcodes.
“We would like to reassure customers that Manchester Airport Group takes the security of customer information extremely seriously and we apologise for any inconvenience or concern caused.”
In an email to customers seen by GB News, Mag said: “We would urge you to be particularly cautious of unexpected emails, calls or text messages claiming to be from us. We will never contact you unexpectedly to ask for payment or banking information.”
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Beverley Griffiths, senior lecturer in security and resilience at Buckinghamshire New University, said: “While email addresses, phone numbers, postcodes and vehicle registration details may appear less sensitive than financial data, large volumes of this information can be highly valuable to cyber criminals.
“Combined, these details can be used to build profiles of individuals and support targeted phishing, social engineering and fraud attempts.
“Manchester Airports Group appears to have responded quickly by containing the incident and working with the relevant authorities.
“Customers should remain vigilant for suspicious emails, texts or phone calls and verify any requests for personal information through official channels.”
The company said it had become aware of the attack on Tuesday.
More than 32 million passengers flew into or out of Manchester Airport last year, while more than 30 million travelled through Stansted, in Essex, and four million through East Midlands in Leicestershire.
The Information Commissioner’s Office said it was assessing the incident.
A spokesman told the BBC: “We can confirm we have received a breach report from Manchester Airports Group, and we are assessing the information provided.”
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