Cathay Pacific has admitted that its recent data breach was much worse than it initially revealed and it was in fact a sustained attack on its system for more than three months. Internal and external IT security teams fought to contain the cyberattack from March until May, it said. Its security firewalls were repeatedly breached […]
Month: November 2018
Firms urged to put a cybercrime recovery plan in place
Travel companies need a disaster recovery plan geared for cybercrime – or could face a systems ‘meltdown’ for days or weeks after an attack. Recovery plans should include specific insurance against cybercrime and a strategy on how to run the business afterwards, warned Barry Gooch, chairman of travel anti-fraud group Profit. A cyberattack, such as […]
Former agent Rita Hunter sentenced to prison
Former travel agent Rita Hunter has been sentenced to four years and eight months in prison after pleading guilty to fraud. The fraud related to flights and accommodation booked for clients which were not supplied or paid for. Hunter, 63, of Sankey Road, Liverpool, appeared at Liverpool Crown Court on Wednesday morning. She was sent […]
Omega Travel collapse sparks investigation
Travel agency Omega Travel has collapsed less than two months after its Atol licence was suspended. Begbies Traynor has been appointed liquidators of the £300 million turnover travel company. An urgent investigation is underway to recover more than £20 million owed to creditors. The company launched in 1965 and specialised in travel to and from […]
Conman jailed following fake holidays and investments scam
A man who conned at least ten people out of more than £100,000 by pretending to be operating as a travel or investment company has been sentenced to seven years in prison. Keith Atkin, of Melton Mowbray in Leicestershire, conned people out of money and sold fake holidays to fund a lavish lifestyle. He appeared […]
Travel firms can cut risk of cyberattack by up to 80%
Travel companies can reduce the risk of cyberattack by up to 80% using free technology, according to an expert. The Global Cyber Alliance (GCA), set up three years ago to prevent cybercrime, said most travel businesses were not aware such technology exists. In the fourth phase of Profit’s Secure Our Systems campaign against cybercrime, backed […]
Travel websites can be scammed in seconds
Images and logos on travel websites can be scammed ‘within seconds’ by cybercriminals intent on replicating a business online for fraudulent purposes. Most pictures online tend to be ‘unprotected’ and are therefore vulnerable to cybercrime, digital image specialists have warned in the third part of anti-fraud group Profit’s Secure Our Systems campaign, backed by Travel […]
Radisson loyalty program suffers data breach
An attacker gained access to Radisson Rewards members’ names, physical and email addresses but credit card and password data were not exposed. The Radisson hotel chain is notifying customers of a data breach after members of its Radisson Rewards program were compromised in a security incident. Radisson Rewards first detected the breach on Oct. 1 […]
Four convicted over fake holiday sickness claim
A family of fraudsters who faked sickness while on holiday, including feigning their children’s illness, have been convicted of contempt of court. Michael Jameson, 43, Claire Weir, 35, Jane Weir, 38, and Janet Weir, 63, of Liverpool made fraudulent sickness claims against Jet2holidays – asking for more than £45,000 in compensation and solicitors’ costs. But […]
Eurostar customer accounts hacked in data breach
Eurostar customers’ login passwords have been re-set after it detected attempts to break into an unspecified number of accounts. The high speed Channel Tunnel rail service said it had notified those whose accounts had been targeted. Other passengers will be told they have been blocked the next time they try to log in and will […]
Agency owners prosecuted in multi-million pound Hajj fraud
Three men behind a travel firm have been prosecuted for a multi-million pound fraud where they falsely claimed to be licensed to sell package trips to Mecca for the Hajj pilgrimage. Leicester-based Al Shafqat Hajj fraudulently used stationary containing the symbols of both Atol and Iata in its business specialising in selling trips to the […]
Former agent Rita Hunter charged with nine counts of fraud
Travel agent Rita Hunter is due to appear at Liverpool Magistrates Court this morning charged with nine new counts of fraud. The alleged fraud relates to flights and accommodation booked for clients which were not supplied or paid for. Hunter was arrested on Tuesday and subsequently charged with nine counts of fraud by false representation […]
Firms urged to spend more on tech to stop cyberattacks
Travel companies need to “significantly” increase spend on up-to-date technology and “do the basics” to protect themselves from cyberattacks. This could mean investing 1%-5% of operating revenue on technology, according to experts from Cribb Cyber Security. The current average for travel companies is less than 1%. In the second part of anti-fraud group Profit’s Secure […]
Travel agent boss, jailed after covering up £380k fraud
A travel agent has been jailed amid claims he tried up to cover up a £380,000 fraud involving his crashed Birmingham firm. Most of the cash was owed to a single creditor of Sunil Kumar Ralhan’s company, Travelogue Ltd. The 37-year-old was the sole director of the firm, which was liquidated in May 2015 after […]
BA says a further 185k cards possibly hit in cyber attack
International Airlines Group (ICAG.L) said an investigation into the theft of customers’ data at its British Airways unit showed hackers may have stolen the personal information of a further 185,000 customers. British Airways apologised in September after the credit card details of hundreds of thousands of its customers were stolen over a two-week period in […]
Cathay Pacific reveals major data hack
The personal data of up to 9.4 million Cathay Pacific passengers has been accessed in the latest security breach to hit the aviation industry. The Hong Kong-based carrier revealed that “unauthorised access” had been obtained to some of its i formation system. Passport numbers, email addresses and 403 expired credit card details were among the […]
Travel agent Rita Hunter remanded in custody
Travel agent Rita Hunter has been remanded in custody after appearing in court on nine fraud charges. The former homeworker appeared at Liverpool Magistrates Court on Wednesday after being arrested by police on Tuesday. Hunter is accused of booking holidays for clients which later turned out to be bogus. Victims claim they handed over thousands […]
Travel staff are the weakest link in cybersecurity
Travel industry staff are the “weakest link” in the fight against cybercrime, a security expert has warned. Cyber consultant Bruce Wynn said cybercrime attacks risked bringing down entire businesses. He was speaking at the launch of anti-fraud group Profit’s Secure Our Systems campaign, backed by Travel Weekly. Wynn, who has 40 years’ cybersecurity experience and […]
Former Tui manager handed 2 year suspended sentence
Former Tui senior manager Karen Doyle has been handed a two-year suspended jail sentence after stealing more than £63,000 worth of gift vouchers to pay for her own holidays. Doyle was sentenced today at Luton Crown Court after pleading guilty to fraud during an earlier hearing this month. She was sentenced to two years in […]