Qantas has confirmed that the cyberattack on a third-party call centre compromised personal data of 5.7 million customers.
The incident has marked one of Australia’s most significant data breaches in recent years.
The breach, linked to a “vishing” attack on a Manila-based call centre, exposed varying degrees of personal information.
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Qantas CEO Vanessa Hudson said support services would be offered to affected customers.
“From today, we are reaching out to customers to notify them of the specific personal data fields that were held in the compromised system,” she said.
After removing duplicate records, Qantas identified that 1.2 million customers had only their names and email addresses compromised.
A further 2.8 million had their frequent flyer numbers accessed, with a smaller group also affected by exposure of points balances and status credits.
Another 1.7 million customers had more extensive data compromised. That included home addresses for 1.3 million people, birthdates for 1.1 million, and phone numbers for 900,000 customers.
Gender details were accessed for 400,000 people, and 10,000 had their meal preferences exposed.
The airline said that no credit card, passport, or financial information was stored on the compromised system, and frequent flyer account security remains unaffected.
“There is no evidence that any personal data stolen from Qantas has been released, but with the support of specialist cyber security experts, we continue to actively monitor.”
Qantas has enhanced cybersecurity measures and is collaborating with Australian federal cyber agencies.
Customers are advised to be vigilant against potential scams and to verify communications purportedly from Qantas through official channels.
Support for customers:
Customers can continue to access our dedicated support line:
- Dedicated Support Line: 1800 971 541 or +61 2 8028 0534
- Available: 24/7
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