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Edinburgh Live
Edinburgh Live
World
Claire Galloway

EasyJet admits nine million customers' details stolen by cyber-hackers

EasyJet has admitted that the details of nine million customers have been "accessed" by hackers in a "sophisticated" cyber-attack.

The budget airline, which operates a number of routes from Edinburgh Airport, confirmed millions of customer email addresses and travel details were stolen in the data breach.

While the airline insists that there is no evidence that the data has been “misused”, easyJet told the stock market that of the nine million people affected, 2,208 had credit card details stolen - but no passport details were accessed.

Those whose credit card details were accessed should already have been contacted by the airline, while customers whose email and travel details were exposed will be contacted by 26 May.

The firm, which first became aware of the attack in January, continues to investigate the breach and is working with the UK's Information Commissioner's Office and National Cyber Security Centre.

In a statement, an EasyJet spokesperson said: "We take issues of security extremely seriously and continue to invest to further enhance our security environment.

"There is no evidence that any personal information of any nature has been misused, however, on the recommendation of the ICO, we are communicating with the approximately nine million customers whose travel details were accessed to advise them of protective steps to minimise any risk of potential phishing."

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In 2019, The Information Commissioner's Office fined British Airways £183m after hackers stole the personal information of half a million customers.

The Guardian reports, EasyJet's breach is one of the largest to affect any company in the UK, raising the possibility of the firm will be forced to pay a hefty fine amid a coronavirus pandemic which has already put immense financial pressure on airlines.

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