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BA Investigating Theft of Personal and Financial Data

Old Sep 7, 2018, 8:15 am
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On Thursday 6 September 2018 at about 1830 London time (UTC+1), BA announced that there had been a data breach involving customers using the BA website and the BA mobile app.

Updates from BA are being posted to this ba.com page: https://www.britishairways.com/en-gb...st-information
A further update dated 25 October 2018 can be found in this post 1377. The SPG Law class action thread can be found here.

As at 1400 London time on Tuesday 11 September 2018, the body of that page read:-
Customer data theft

We are investigating, as a matter of urgency, the theft of customer data between 22:58 BST August 21 2018 until 21:45 BST September 5 2018 from our website, ba.com, and our mobile app.

The stolen data included personal and financial details of customers making bookings and changes on ba.com and the airline’s app. The data did not include travel or passport details.

The theft has been reported to the authorities and our website is now working normally.

What to do if you have been affected

If you believe you may have been affected because you made a booking or paid to change to your booking with a credit or debit card on ba.com or the mobile app between 22:58 BST August 21 2018 until 21:45 BST September 5 2018, we recommend you contact your bank or credit card provider and follow their advice.

We understand that this incident will cause concern and inconvenience. We are contacting all affected customers to say sorry, and we will continue to update them in the coming days.

Phishing

Customers should also be aware that fraudsters may be claiming to be British Airways and attempt to gather personal information by deception (known as 'phishing').

We will not be contacting any customers asking for payment card details and any such requests should be reported to the police and relevant authorities.

See below for more information on how to validate that the email you have received from us is genuine.
That is followed by a series of FAQs. These are reproduced at the end of this wikipost.

If you are experiencing difficulties in changing your BA password or want further information about doing so, some information is in this thread: https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/brit...rd-ba-com.html (which also has a wikipost).

Reports from FTers suggest that credit card companies and banks are taking differing approaches to this incident:-
  • American Express - A recorded message says they are aware of the breach, there is no need to take any further action and if you suffer any financial loss you will be fully compensated; an email says: "There is no action you need to take – we will contact you immediately if there's any unusual activity with your Account. In the meantime you can continue to use your Card as normal" (see post 293, post 401, post 470 and post 491).
  • Barclaycard - They just assured me I was fully protected, and I didn't need to do anything yet (see post 253); however at 18.20 on 7/9/18 the customer service helpline automated message says that affected cards are being reissued (see post 511).
  • Barclays Bank - They have contacted people they believe to have been affected, and have blocked their cards from online use (website/app), but the cards remain valid for physical (chip & PIN) transactions in shops, ATMs etc. New cards being dispatched "within a week" (see post 918).
  • Capital One - online transactions being blocked, new cards being issued (see post 493).
  • Chase (British Airways visa) - no contact from Chase about data breach and card still working
  • HSBC Premier Mastercard - Offering customers the option to freeze the card or replace it with a new card (see post 274).
  • Lloyds - Said "wait and see", but did give the option to cancel the card and have it reissued (see post 403).
  • Lloyds Mastercard - Based on the information they have, fraudulent use of my card is unlikely, just keep an eye on online banking and report anything suspicious (see post 370).
  • Monzo - Automatically replacing all cards (see post 371).
  • Natwest- Of the opinion that as there had been no fraudulent activity on my account to just keep an eye on things, and to call immediately if any suspicious transactions appear and fraud team would refund (post 315).
  • Sainsburys Bank - seem to be replacing all cards proactively (see post 968)
  • Starling - Automatically replacing cards (see post 460).
  • Tesco Bank - Pro-actively sending a new card as per details in this post (post 484)
  • TSB - Call the Telephone Banking Team on 03459 758758 to discuss further (see post 437).
  • Vanquis - online transactions being blocked, new cards being issued (see post 493).
FAQs (as at 1400 London time on Tuesday 11 September 2018):-
Have I been affected?

How do I know if I have been affected?

Customers who made bookings or changes to their bookings on ba.com or our mobile app between 22:58 BST August 21, 2018 and 21:45 BST September 5, 2018 may have been affected.

We advise any customers who believe they may have been affected to contact their banks or credit card providers and follow their advice.

We are experiencing high call volumes into our contact centres so please continue to check this page for the latest information.

Contact us

What data has been lost?

The personal and financial details of customers making bookings on ba.com and our mobile app between 22:58 BST August 21, 2018 and 21:45 BST September 5, 2018 was compromised. No passport or travel details were stolen. Only customers who made bookings between these dates are affected.

Names, billing address, email address and all bank card details were all at risk.

Did this affect just new bookings or any payment transaction made within the impacted time period?

All payment transactions made on ba.com or our mobile app from 22:58 BST August 21 2018 to 21:45 September 5 2018 inclusive were affected. Nothing before or after these dates and times was impacted. Payments made through our call centres, travel agents or online travel sites are not affected.

Are my saved payment card details safe if they were used to make a booking in that period?

If you made a payment using a saved card on ba.com or the mobile app from 22:58 BST August 21, 2018 to 21:45 September 5, 2018 inclusive, you may have been impacted.

No Executive Club accounts were compromised in the data theft. There is no impact to Avios or details stored with the British Airways Executive Club.

Has saved credit card data been stolen, even if a booking hasn’t been made in that period?

No, saved payment card data has not been compromised. However, if you made a payment using a saved card on ba.com or the mobile app from 22:58 BST August 21, 2018 to 21:45 September 5, 2018 inclusive, you may have been impacted.

How were phone numbers not affected?

Phone number information is collected in a separate part of the booking process and is not used as part of the payment transaction therefore this has not been impacted.

I used PayPal to pay for my ba.com transaction. Is this impacted?

If you booked through PayPal, your PayPal account will not have been compromised. There does remain the risk that some of your personal information such as your name and address may have been accessed. No passport details or travel details were compromised.

Is Apple Pay affected?

If you used Apple Pay via the mobile app then your data will not have been compromised.

I had a failed payment attempt during the affected time period – am I affected?

If you clicked the pay button on ba.com then the transaction would have taken place even if the outcome was unsuccessful and the data would have been compromised.

We advise any concerned customers to contact their banks or credit card providers and follow their advice.

Will I be affected if I made a free change to my booking but my payment card details were saved in the reservation?

If you made a free change to your booking via ba.com and did not use your payment card as part of that transaction, then you will not have been impacted.

Are travel agent bookings affected?

Only bookings or changes to bookings made directly with ba.com or the mobile app between 22:58 BST August 21, 2018 and 21:45 BST September 5, 2018 were affected.

If a change was made to a travel agent booking on ba.com and payment made for an additional product, such as seat reservations or excess baggage, then these would be affected.

Does this affect Executive Club accounts in any way? i.e. missing Avios/ Tier Points

No accounts were compromised in the data theft. There is no impact to Avios or details stored with the British Airways Executive Club.

I received an email about the data theft, however I only cancelled a booking during this time – will I be affected?

If you cancelled and refunded your booking between 22:58 BST August 21, 2018 and 21:45 September 5, 2018, you will not have been impacted.

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What should I do if I think I am affected?

Should I call my bank or cancel my credit cards?

We recommend that all customers who made bookings or changes to their bookings with ba.com or the mobile app, between 22:58 BST August 21, 2018 and 21:45 BST September 5, 2018, contact their banks or credit card providers and follow their advice.

I think my card was compromised when I made a booking on ba.com outside of the time period – what should I do?

The data theft relates to customer bookings made or changed between 22:58 BST August 21, 2018 and 21:45 September 5, 2018 only.

We advise any concerned customers to contact their banks or credit card providers and follow their advice.

How would I know if I have been a victim of identity theft?

There are a number of signs to look out for that may indicate that you might have been a victim of identity theft:-
  • Post from your bank or utility provider doesn’t arrive.
  • You apply for state benefits, but are told you are already claiming.
  • Refused financial services, credit cards or a loan, despite having a good credit rating.
  • Receiving letters in your name from solicitors or debt collectors for debts that aren’t yours.
If you think that you might be a victim of identity theft, then you should:
  • Request a copy of your credit file to check for any suspicious credit applications.
  • Report the theft of personal information and suspicious credit applications to the police and ask for a crime reference number.
  • If fraud has been committed, contact Action Fraud.
I have had some suspicious emails or phone calls – are they legitimate?

If you are concerned about an email, we recommend that you don't click on any links, open any documents or reply to it until you have looked into it further.

Official emails relating to this theft will be sent from: [email protected]. You should hover over the sent email address to confirm this is where the email has been sent from before clicking on it.

British Airways will never proactively contact you to request your personal or confidential information. If you ever receive an email or call, claiming to be from us, requesting this information, please report it to us straight away.

We've put the details of the scams we're aware of on our ba.com website security page. There's also security essentials information to help you, along with details of how to report any new scams to us (or other emails/calls that have concerned you).

Will I be reimbursed?

We take the protection of our customers’ data seriously and are very sorry for the concern that this criminal activity has caused.

We will continue to keep our customers updated with the very latest information.

No customer will be out of pocket as a direct result of the criminal theft of data from ba.com and the airline’s mobile app. Any customer who made a booking between 22:58 BST August 21 2018 and 21:45 BST September 5 2018 will be reimbursed for any fraudulent activity on their accounts as a direct result of the data theft and we shall advise the process for this in due course.

We will be offering a 12-month credit rating monitoring service to any affected customer who is concerned about an impact to their credit rating, provided by specialists in the field and will share details of this in the near future.

Will BA pay for costs associated with getting new cards, e.g. postage costs?

No customer will be out of pocket as a direct result of the criminal theft of data from ba.com and the airline’s mobile app. We are working through the process and will update our customers as soon as we can.

How do I reset my ba.com password?

ba.com and Executive Club accounts have not been compromised and your login details are safe.

However, if you’d like to change your password, first ensure you are logged out of ba.com and click the Forgotten Pin/Password link on the top right-hand corner of the homepage. We recommend you choose a unique password that you do not use for any other online account.

We are aware of some customers experiencing intermittent issues when attempting to reset their passwords. We are working on resolving this as quickly as possible.

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How does this affect my bookings?

What shall I do if I am due to travel today?

The incident has been resolved and all systems are working normally so customers due to travel can check-in online as normal.

Will I still be able to check in?

Yes, all customers booked on our flights will be able to check in as normal.

Will this affect any future bookings?

The incident has been resolved and ba.com is working normally so future bookings will not be affected.

Will bookings made over the period of this incident remain confirmed?

Yes, all bookings made remain valid for travel.

If I cancelled the card my booking was made with what do I need to bring to the airport?

The payment card that was used to pay for the booking should be brought to the airport if you are the owner of the card and are travelling. However, if the payment card has expired since the booking was made and you have a new card, or you don't have the original card used for payment, please print out a copy of your flight itinerary from Manage my Booking.

I have now cancelled my credit card, but I had used that card to make a future flight booking, so how will I be able to access that booking?
You do not need to enter your payment card details when retrieving an existing booking via Manage My Booking on ba.com, so access to future booking is not restricted due to the cancellation of the payment card.
As of Wednesday 12th September, affected customers are being emailed with the following additional information

We deeply apologise for any worry and inconvenience this criminal activity has caused. For your reassurance, we’re offering you 12 months of free credit and identity monitoring services, provided by Experian, one of the UK’s leading Credit Reference agencies.

Your free ProtectMyID membership
To help you to monitor your personal information for certain signs of potential identity theft, we are offering you a free 12 month membership to Experian ProtectMyID. This service helps detect possible misuse of your personal data and provides you with identity monitoring support, focussed on the identification and resolution of identity theft.

Activating your free ProtectMyID membership
1. Ensure that you sign up for the service by 12 December 2018. Your code expires after this date.
2. Visit the ProtectMyID website to get started.
3. Click on ‘Join ProtectMyID’ (top right-hand side).
4. Enter your details along with the following activation code: XXXXXXXX
This code is unique to you and only available in this email – please keep this email for reference.

Once your membership is activated, you’ll have access to the following features:
1. Unlimited access to your Experian Credit Report.
2. Credit Alerting – an email or text to let you know when certain changes happen on your Experian Credit Report, such as the addition of a new credit search.
3. Access to an Identity Theft Resolution service if you do become a victim of fraud, where you’ll have a dedicated case worker who will support you in resolving fraud that has occurred.
4. If you are at higher risk of fraud, Experian can add protective Cifas registration to your credit report which can help prevent credit being taken in your name. The Cifas Protective Registration service places a flag alongside your name and personal details in the National Fraud Database. Companies and organisations who are signed up as members of the database will see you’re at risk and take extra steps to protect you.

If you have any questions regarding this service, then please contact Experian’s Customer Support Centre on 03444 818182*. They are open Monday to Friday, 8am to 8pm and Saturday, 9am to 5pm.
Note that the email from BA gives you a personal "Activation Code". However, when you get to the signup forms for ProtectMyID, you put the code into the second page of the sign up form in the "Promotional Code" field.
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BA Investigating Theft of Personal and Financial Data

Old Sep 14, 2018, 3:43 am
  #1006  
FlyerTalk Evangelist
 
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: UK
Posts: 10,709
Originally Posted by simons1


Although didn't Experian also have some issues?
They did very badly.
origin is offline  
Old Sep 14, 2018, 3:44 am
  #1007  
 
Join Date: Dec 2015
Location: UK
Programs: BAEC Silver, *A, Marriott
Posts: 181
Originally Posted by Agent69
Ultimately, if you are worried about others misusing your data, then don't give it out to anyone. Nowhere is 100% safe
I agree that under current computational structures what you say is true, however, hackers are targeting low hanging (and sometimes rotting on the ground) fruit. There were measures that BA could have taken (such as PCI-DSS compliance) and while it would not have made them impervious, would have likely meant that hackers would go elsewhere first.
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Old Sep 14, 2018, 3:45 am
  #1008  
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Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: UK
Posts: 10,709
Originally Posted by rapidex
How cynical. I have not requested any money from BA. I simply want the level of protection they are offering at multiple addresses.
If its in your name and the address is known to you, it would be covered under the scheme, I would have thought.

With me they connected my name to an address I knew nothing about. In your case you do know about these properties.
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Old Sep 14, 2018, 3:54 am
  #1009  
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Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: UK
Posts: 10,709
Originally Posted by Takiteasy

Only blocked on companies house for directors who haven’t held any posts before 2015. For those only month and year of birth are visible. All other still have their full date of birth visible.
Yes quick and easy for people to use and abuse.
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Old Sep 14, 2018, 3:55 am
  #1010  
 
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: London, ARN, HEL, ..... or MAN
Programs: BA GGL / GFL, Mucci Diamond!, HH Diamond, Radisson Premium, IHG Gold, Hertz Gold
Posts: 5,873
Originally Posted by bisonrav


what liability? They're liable only for directly attributable costs. Customers don't share the proceeds of GPDR fines, that goes to government.

I guess from your last paragraph that you're angling for status promotion or extension: it isn't going to happen. Might seem easy and cheap to you, but not when multiplied up by a few 100k. Same goes for any goodwill gesture.

So what you're saying is that what has happened (because of BA not adhering to rules and laws) is OK and we all should just move on? The logical extrapolation of this is that it's OK for all online businesses not to adhere to data security standards. Of course BA has liability to their customers.
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Old Sep 14, 2018, 4:12 am
  #1011  
 
Join Date: Nov 2010
Posts: 5,596
Originally Posted by origin
If its in your name and the address is known to you, it would be covered under the scheme, I would have thought.

With me they connected my name to an address I knew nothing about. In your case you do know about these properties.
I hope you are correct. I am currently seeking clarification from BA and no one is able to give me a straight answer. Both lawyers, Scotland and England, have said not necessarily.
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Old Sep 14, 2018, 4:19 am
  #1012  
 
Join Date: Dec 2016
Programs: BAEC GGL/CR; Hilton Diamond; Mucci des Puccis
Posts: 5,573
Originally Posted by ThatT1Feeling
So what you're saying is that what has happened (because of BA not adhering to rules and laws) is OK and we all should just move on? The logical extrapolation of this is that it's OK for all online businesses not to adhere to data security standards. Of course BA has liability to their customers.
They're on the very significant hook of 4% of their turnover as a fine. It's just that the liability is to the government, not individuals. The logical extrapolation of that happening is corporates pay a shed load of attention to data security.

Good luck with whatever request you make. But you are actually less likely to get anything because of GDPR, because BA will have to cover that liability first. There are some edge cases where losses and risks are significant, but in most cases the data that has permanently escaped is available anyway from loose facebook, electoral roll, and so on. Card companies will swallow fraud or reissue cards. So generally it's not obvious to see what compensation is due.
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Old Sep 14, 2018, 4:45 am
  #1013  
 
Join Date: Sep 2018
Posts: 1
I was affected by this data breach and called BA to discuss compensation, I had to cancel my card and pay Ł60 to have a replacement couriered to me as I was on holiday at this time. The refund for this was processed without incident and the agent I was speaking to advised me to watch out for emails from BA regarding a compensatory offer from BA. Apparently this will be in the form of a choice between status extension (for those applicable) and an unspecified voucher to credit towards future flights. Ironically they are yet to figure out how to offer this choice using their IT infrastructure.
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Last edited by HollyV; Sep 14, 2018 at 4:45 am Reason: typo
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Old Sep 14, 2018, 4:50 am
  #1014  
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Join Date: Aug 2007
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Originally Posted by rapidex
I hope you are correct. I am currently seeking clarification from BA and no one is able to give me a straight answer. Both lawyers, Scotland and England, have said not necessarily.
Did you manage to set up the experian account and have you spoken to them about your address you are linked to, but not necessary financially.
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Old Sep 14, 2018, 4:55 am
  #1015  
 
Join Date: May 2010
Location: Oxon, UK
Programs: Mucci des canapes, Skywards Gold, BAEC Gold, IC Plat Amb, Accor Gold
Posts: 1,948
It is possible that a successful claim can be made under Article 82.1 of the EU GDPR regulations for non-material damage, I have no idea how this might be quantified and i would imagine any claim made to BA on this basis will be resisted. However whatever their legal obligations BA have managed to annoy and erode the trust of a large number of customers (to a varying degree). Quite frankly I feel increasingly negative about BA mainly around their reluctance to acknowledge fault and make good on a number issues over the years (we will leave aside a greater degree of variability in customer experience than most other airlines I've flown with). I have no idea whether or not they are better or worse than other airlines in this respect but in the end it is my subjective feelings that matter to me. Currently I have a couple of refundable high value trips coming up and I am seriously considering canceling them and making other arrangements. This is an emotional decision and I am well aware that BA won't miss an individual customer much - this is amply reinforced by the fact that they have not replied to e-mails from me about this issue or offered any goodwill gesture. However if enough customers do move away, even for a while, that will have some impact.
That, rather than any strict legal liability is what BA have considered and felt unimportant. If they had responded differently would I feel differently - you bet.
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Old Sep 14, 2018, 4:57 am
  #1016  
 
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: London, ARN, HEL, ..... or MAN
Programs: BA GGL / GFL, Mucci Diamond!, HH Diamond, Radisson Premium, IHG Gold, Hertz Gold
Posts: 5,873
Originally Posted by bisonrav


They're on the very significant hook of 4% of their turnover as a fine. It's just that the liability is to the government, not individuals. The logical extrapolation of that happening is corporates pay a shed load of attention to data security.

Good luck with whatever request you make. But you are actually less likely to get anything because of GDPR, because BA will have to cover that liability first. There are some edge cases where losses and risks are significant, but in most cases the data that has permanently escaped is available anyway from loose facebook, electoral roll, and so on. Card companies will swallow fraud or reissue cards. So generally it's not obvious to see what compensation is due.

I agree with your logic and yes I understand that PCI breaches don't actually result in any meaningful sanctions, but of course GDPR does (agree it's not payable to me) - either way I suspect BA falls foul of both of these sets of regulations.

However the loss of my data does add an additional, potentially useful, layer of information to the bad guys. As you say, there is a lot of information already out there, but this BA information could, for example, provide the missing link of information about when I may be away from home and that I'm an Amex card holder for example. So there is a direct impact to me, almost certainly caused by BA's cost-and-corner cutting, and, as I punt something between Ł25k and Ł40k BA's way each year, then I think there is a case for BA making some effort to keep me happy, and, just as importantly, demonstrating that they have fixed their payment security.
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Old Sep 14, 2018, 8:07 am
  #1017  
 
Join Date: Nov 2017
Posts: 386
this sure is a busy board.....struggling to keep up so forgive me if these points have been covered already.
I read some days back an article (Sunday Times?) indicating BA were not compliant with PCI data security; they responded to me in writing that they are.
And the Experian sign up experience was painful with the password and memorable word bouncing multiple times despite me being compliant with their format. But got there in the end.
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Old Sep 14, 2018, 9:05 am
  #1018  
 
Join Date: May 2010
Location: Oxon, UK
Programs: Mucci des canapes, Skywards Gold, BAEC Gold, IC Plat Amb, Accor Gold
Posts: 1,948
Originally Posted by Yeoman5
And the Experian sign up experience was painful with the password and memorable word bouncing multiple times despite me being compliant with their format. But got there in the end.
Slightly ironic that one company with a variable standard of customer IT experience should be referring us to another with a similarly reliable and smooth functioning website....
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Old Sep 14, 2018, 9:40 am
  #1019  
 
Join Date: Mar 2011
Posts: 387
Just got an email from RBS, without prompting on my part they know my card was compromised and are sending out a new one. Until it arrives, some transactions of the card not present variety, I guess ones where CVV used but not PIN, may be declined.
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Old Sep 14, 2018, 9:53 am
  #1020  
 
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: HEL
Programs: BA Gold, OZ Diamond, LH Silver
Posts: 553
I just received a call from Amex that my card has been used for 5 fraud online purchases today. The data has most likely been stolen from BA website. Luckily Amex will reimburse all the fraud charges but still a pita to get the new card delivered while I am on the road. Also I have to change the credit card details for all future hotel bookings, rental car companies etc. which is just frustrating and unnecessary extra work.
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