Mar 27, 2015, 9:09 am
Last edit by: corporate-wage-slave
If you are new to this thread, please read this wiki before posting a question.
It's here to summarise what we know so far. It will save you the trouble of skim-reading the whole thread and should only take a minute to read. Thanks!
The very short version is:
If all your BA Avios have vanished, don't panic. They have probably been temporarily frozen by BA, not stolen by hackers.
British Airways have issued an FAQ on the issue:
http://www.britishairways.com/travel...s?p_faqid=5249
Starting on 27 March 2015, a very large number of people have found that their Avios balance has been reset to zero. Their list of transactions shows an "Ex-Gratia" deduction of their entire previous balance. Other people are also reporting they are unable to access their accounts at all, with their BAEC number not being recognised.
As of 17 hrs BST 30 March 2015, some members of FT have seen their Avios returned, as an equal Ex-Gratia credit to their account.
BAEC call centre staff do not seem to have received a thorough briefing and are giving at times contradictory information. However, an email has gone out to some, not all, BAEC members affected by this issue, with the subject "Executive Club Password Change", details here in post 181. At present there is no definitive information about the exact cause, but it's clear that BA believes there has been a serious security breach (or that there was a serious risk of such a breach).
Can I fix it myself?
Not at this stage. Early posts described a two part process but that no longer works, perhaps because there were too many cases. It will be necessary to reset your password if you are affected. After that you can login to your account, but at the moment those affected will still see zero Avios. Tier Points are unaffected by this incident.
Do I need to reset my password?
If you can't get into BA.com then yes. There seems to be two ways to do this:
1) If you received the email in post 181 above, follow the link to generate a new password. Note that you should double check that this is the precise same email shown in the link. There is a facility to view this email in a browser, top right, this is hosted by ed4.net
2) On the front page of BA.com -- when not logged in -- there is a "Forgotten PIN/Password" option. This should send an email to your registered account and from there you can reset your password.
There are, however, many reports of option 2 not working, although it is working for some BAEC members on some occasions. As always, check your spam box. If you can't get it to work, you can telephone the call centre (service centre) and after asking additional questions to verify identity, they can generate the email too.
I haven't received the email but I have been locked out / zero'd, what should I do?
Try to reset your password as above, and you could ring BA to find out if you need to take additional action. However the chances are that at the moment you will need to wait at least a few days until the situation becomes clearer.
I haven't been blocked, do I need to do anything?
No. But if you are worried you can reset your password inside BAEC, just go to My Executive Club / Manage My Account / Update My Personal Information / Login Details. However with so many BAEC members inhibited in making bookings at the moment, now may be a good time to take advantage of unclaimed availability.
Have other Avios partners been hit by this?
Yes, Iberia have been, Avios.com apparently not.
How do I look for or book redemptions?
If you have been zero'd then the Book with Avios or Money tab on the left side of My Executive Club may be blocked. However, you can at least check availability via Executive Club / Reward Flights / Book a Reward Flight. BAEC call centre staff are able to book redemptions for you. Remember to check that any booking fee is waived (hopefully they will do this without prompting). In other cases call centre staff have offered to put a redemption booking on "hold" pending the resolution of this issue. Alternatively if you have an Avios.com account with Avios already available there, then this maybe another way of handling this matter.
Statement of March 28 by AwardWallet.com : https://awardwallet.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=16&t=6616&sid=28d901e85aafebb62044 609dc1a1ae7b
It's here to summarise what we know so far. It will save you the trouble of skim-reading the whole thread and should only take a minute to read. Thanks!
The very short version is:
If all your BA Avios have vanished, don't panic. They have probably been temporarily frozen by BA, not stolen by hackers.
British Airways have issued an FAQ on the issue:
http://www.britishairways.com/travel...s?p_faqid=5249
Starting on 27 March 2015, a very large number of people have found that their Avios balance has been reset to zero. Their list of transactions shows an "Ex-Gratia" deduction of their entire previous balance. Other people are also reporting they are unable to access their accounts at all, with their BAEC number not being recognised.
As of 17 hrs BST 30 March 2015, some members of FT have seen their Avios returned, as an equal Ex-Gratia credit to their account.
BAEC call centre staff do not seem to have received a thorough briefing and are giving at times contradictory information. However, an email has gone out to some, not all, BAEC members affected by this issue, with the subject "Executive Club Password Change", details here in post 181. At present there is no definitive information about the exact cause, but it's clear that BA believes there has been a serious security breach (or that there was a serious risk of such a breach).
Can I fix it myself?
Not at this stage. Early posts described a two part process but that no longer works, perhaps because there were too many cases. It will be necessary to reset your password if you are affected. After that you can login to your account, but at the moment those affected will still see zero Avios. Tier Points are unaffected by this incident.
Do I need to reset my password?
If you can't get into BA.com then yes. There seems to be two ways to do this:
1) If you received the email in post 181 above, follow the link to generate a new password. Note that you should double check that this is the precise same email shown in the link. There is a facility to view this email in a browser, top right, this is hosted by ed4.net
2) On the front page of BA.com -- when not logged in -- there is a "Forgotten PIN/Password" option. This should send an email to your registered account and from there you can reset your password.
There are, however, many reports of option 2 not working, although it is working for some BAEC members on some occasions. As always, check your spam box. If you can't get it to work, you can telephone the call centre (service centre) and after asking additional questions to verify identity, they can generate the email too.
I haven't received the email but I have been locked out / zero'd, what should I do?
Try to reset your password as above, and you could ring BA to find out if you need to take additional action. However the chances are that at the moment you will need to wait at least a few days until the situation becomes clearer.
I haven't been blocked, do I need to do anything?
No. But if you are worried you can reset your password inside BAEC, just go to My Executive Club / Manage My Account / Update My Personal Information / Login Details. However with so many BAEC members inhibited in making bookings at the moment, now may be a good time to take advantage of unclaimed availability.
Have other Avios partners been hit by this?
Yes, Iberia have been, Avios.com apparently not.
How do I look for or book redemptions?
If you have been zero'd then the Book with Avios or Money tab on the left side of My Executive Club may be blocked. However, you can at least check availability via Executive Club / Reward Flights / Book a Reward Flight. BAEC call centre staff are able to book redemptions for you. Remember to check that any booking fee is waived (hopefully they will do this without prompting). In other cases call centre staff have offered to put a redemption booking on "hold" pending the resolution of this issue. Alternatively if you have an Avios.com account with Avios already available there, then this maybe another way of handling this matter.
Statement of March 28 by AwardWallet.com : https://awardwallet.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=16&t=6616&sid=28d901e85aafebb62044 609dc1a1ae7b
27 Mar: Large numbers of BAEC accounts being Locked/Zeroed Out/in Audit ('Ex-gratia')
Mar 27, 2015, 11:16 am
#152
Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: London
Programs: BA IHG
Posts: 1,370
All mine gone also. Had to reset my password.
Also using AwardWallet if that is a common theme here.
Glad I managed to spend most of them already. Would be seriously pee'ed off if I was about to make a redemption.
Also using AwardWallet if that is a common theme here.
Glad I managed to spend most of them already. Would be seriously pee'ed off if I was about to make a redemption.
Mar 27, 2015, 11:16 am
#153
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: DFW
Programs: AA Lifetime Platinum, Hyatt Plat Hilton Gold, SPG Gold, Club Carl Gold, IHG Plat
Posts: 1,002
Just tried to reset my password but it wouldn't let me. But the change password email I received from BA DID show that my account balance is now 0.
Mar 27, 2015, 11:17 am
#154
Original Poster
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: London
Programs: BA Silver, Sky Team Silver, Star Alliance Silver
Posts: 159
I suggest a redirect to a page that explains the situation, which would be less traumatic than finding one's balance suddenly at zero. Something along the lines of
"We are sorry that you are temporarily unable to access your Executive Club account. Because of an earlier hacking incident involving many Executive Club accounts, we have had to take this measure in order to guard your Avios from theft. It is unknown when regular service will be restored. We apologize for any inconvenience".
"We are sorry that you are temporarily unable to access your Executive Club account. Because of an earlier hacking incident involving many Executive Club accounts, we have had to take this measure in order to guard your Avios from theft. It is unknown when regular service will be restored. We apologize for any inconvenience".
Mar 27, 2015, 11:20 am
#155
Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: EWR-SEA-IAD
Programs: UA 1P MM, AS MVP G*, SPG Gold, Hyatt Plat, IHG Plat, Hilton Diamond, Marriott Gold
Posts: 977
Reset my password but want to book a flight now. Wonder if I transfer the points from chase if it would post properly...
Mar 27, 2015, 11:21 am
#157
Moderator: British Airways Executive Club
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: Scotland & London
Programs: BA GGL, IHG Diamond Ambassador, Hilton Diamond, Hyatt Globalist, Mucci des Salons Ouvrants
Posts: 3,025
I tried to log on but no joy - on changing my password I found all my miles had gone. However 1 quick call to the Gold line, a very nice lady checked a few details with me and then said the miles would be reinstated in a day or so.
I don't mind as it means they have stopped someone potentially stealing them - I do think they could have put a warning on the page but never mind. All very painless to fix in my experience.
Regards
aks12-
I don't mind as it means they have stopped someone potentially stealing them - I do think they could have put a warning on the page but never mind. All very painless to fix in my experience.
Regards
aks12-
Mar 27, 2015, 11:21 am
#158
Join Date: Mar 2012
Location: BHX
Programs: BA GGL CCR GfL, SQ Gold, Hyatt Glob, HH Diamond, Marriott Plat, Cafe Nero Loyalty Card (7 Stamps)
Posts: 7,328
Just to put this to bed:
Has anyone who does not use Awardwallet (and never has done), had their account locked?
Has anyone who does not use Awardwallet (and never has done), had their account locked?
Mar 27, 2015, 11:24 am
#159
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: Near Edinburgh
Programs: BA Silver
Posts: 9,034
Mar 27, 2015, 11:25 am
#160
Ambassador, British Airways Executive Club, easyJet and Ryanair
Join Date: Sep 2011
Location: UK/Las Vegas
Programs: BA Gold (GGL/CCR)
Posts: 15,924
Mar 27, 2015, 11:25 am
#161
Join Date: May 2014
Location: London
Programs: BAEC Silver
Posts: 20
Mar 27, 2015, 11:25 am
#162
Join Date: Feb 2002
Location: London. Or a plane.
Programs: "Only" 50,000 TPs until BA GGLfL
Posts: 2,774
2) My Bank is able to deal with remote access hack attempts without having to zero my account balance.
Mar 27, 2015, 11:26 am
#164
Join Date: Dec 2013
Programs: QRPC Platinum, KFEG
Posts: 999
Mar 27, 2015, 11:30 am
#165
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: Upper Sternistan
Posts: 10,037
I think the reason that so many of us here happen to use AwardWallet is a little reversed: because we use AW, we noticed the zeroed out balances. People who use AW often run it once a day for updates.
Before I had AW, I probably would have gone many, many months without checking my BA balances.
Before I had AW, I probably would have gone many, many months without checking my BA balances.