The personal information of an undisclosed number of travelers has been compromised as a result of a hack of a company that handles ticket processing and frequent-flier data for major global airlines, including Star Alliance and OneWorld members.
According to a spokesperson for the company’s Geneva-based parent company, the hackers were able to gain access to certain computer systems at Atlanta-based SITA Passenger Service System for up to a month before the incident’s severity was reported on Feb. 24.
Sandro Hofer, the spokesperson, would not say how many airlines were affected; SITA claims to service over 400 and is industry-owned. Singapore Airlines, New Zealand Air, and Lufthansa are among the airlines affected, according to the company.
SITA said in a statement that “the degree to which (frequent flyer alliances’) individual airlines is affected differs from airline to airline.”
Malaysia Airlines, Finnair, Japan Airlines, and Cathay Pacific have all released statements or contacted frequent flyer members about the hack, according to the study.
Names, frequent-flyer numbers, and program status were the only customer data that could have been obtained, according to United Airlines. It advised frequent flyer customers to update their account passwords “out of an abundance of caution” in an email.
SITA specializes in passenger travel planning and booking, airport operations and security, luggage, aircraft connectivity, and in-flight cabin and cockpit operations for the airline industry. The violation was first revealed on Thursday.
