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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 10, 2018, 5:23 pm
  #856  
 
Join Date: Oct 2015
Location: London, UK
Programs: BAEC GGL/GFl, HH Diamond, BW Diamond, Virgin Voyages Deep Blue Extra, Blue Peter Badge Holder
Posts: 3,933
Originally Posted by Tafflyer


Yes, which would confirm the theory that an active ad-blocker might well have protected some of us.
equally those who have details prestored may also have a degree of protection, but that hasn’t stopped me getting new cards in case.
navylad is offline  
Old Sep 10, 2018, 5:41 pm
  #857  
 
Join Date: May 2012
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Posts: 4,126
Originally Posted by navylad


equally those who have details prestored may also have a degree of protection, but that hasn’t stopped me getting new cards in case.
Getting new cards in any case is an appropriate response. According to BA, pre-stored cards used to make payments during the period of time in question have also been compromised.
Tafflyer is offline  
Old Sep 10, 2018, 10:13 pm
  #858  
 
Join Date: Jan 2017
Posts: 790
Sheesh. I made my first BA.com transaction (Avios redemption) ever on Sept. 6.
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Old Sep 10, 2018, 11:41 pm
  #859  
 
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: YYC
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Posts: 4,734
Originally Posted by argonath
Using it now...ironically its blocking 10 trackers already on the FLyertalk site..
I run 2 different blockers. ....... is blocking 10 trackers on FT, Ublock origin is blocking 14.

Edit: the name of one program has been replaced with the ..... Autoscript edit on FT?
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Last edited by Jagboi; Sep 10, 2018 at 11:48 pm
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Old Sep 11, 2018, 1:21 am
  #860  
 
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: Sheffield, UK
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Posts: 766
Originally Posted by Calchas
What is probably speculated here is a cross site scripting attack. Typically by taking control of a third party advertiser on ba.com (advertisers go through a broker and are usually not under the direct control of the website), a nefarious party can inject code that runs in the user’s browser and, for example, captures key strokes.

To me this sounds like the most logical cause, and would explain the delay, as their is a lot of back work to be done to try and find the source and the host and block that particular server and service from providing any further adverts,
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Old Sep 11, 2018, 1:27 am
  #861  
 
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Posts: 5,846
Originally Posted by Tafflyer


Getting new cards in any case is an appropriate response. According to BA, pre-stored cards used to make payments during the period of time in question have also been compromised.
I have seen that BA has said this about stored cards but, if that's the case then they are effectively admitting a different breach of PCI DSS regulations, over and above the existing XSS red card. Once a card is stored, it should be immediately encrypted and tokenised. The card number should never actually exist anywhere on ba.com. It should not be remotely possible to "recreate" the card number at the time of transaction. What really winds me up is that they say that they are PCI compliant when it's clear that they can't be.
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Old Sep 11, 2018, 1:54 am
  #862  
cte
 
Join Date: Jun 2015
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In the meantime I've signed up for CIFAS protective registration as some previous posters have done. I'm not too concerned about my card details being leaked, but I am about my personal details and I think a few extra identity checks are worth it for the additional protection.

Will be interesting to see if BA will be happy to pay for the Ł20 fee...
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Old Sep 11, 2018, 2:07 am
  #863  
 
Join Date: May 2006
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Anybody know if running an adblocker like AdGuard on a fruit based device would block anything nefarious on the mobile app?
Tiger_lily is online now  
Old Sep 11, 2018, 2:13 am
  #864  
 
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: Cheshire / Wherever they send me
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Posts: 941
Originally Posted by toothy
Most organisations have recommendations from their annual PCI compliance reports. Just because they did not pass with flying colours, does not mean that the website was not secure. It's more likely to be that they failed on something like card machines in the terminal or a contact centre process.


T
Having previously stated this, having read more on it, for example on HFP, it is clear that they had a more serious PCI compliance issue. Most organisations use a third party to handle card transactions, who specialise in handling card transactions and are PCI compliant. It appears that BA haven't done it and are storing card details themselves.


T
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Old Sep 11, 2018, 2:25 am
  #865  
Moderator, Iberia Airlines, Airport Lounges, and Ambassador, British Airways Executive Club
 
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Originally Posted by Tiger_lily
Anybody know if running an adblocker like AdGuard on a fruit based device would block anything nefarious on the mobile app?
I don't think anyone knows absolutely for certain (yet) that adblockers would have prevented this attack. There is a series of suppositions made here, and one or two shreds of evidence, which paint a plausible picture, but there is a bit of a risk of cognitive dissonance here.
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Old Sep 11, 2018, 2:37 am
  #866  
 
Join Date: May 2006
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Originally Posted by corporate-wage-slave
I don't think anyone knows absolutely for certain (yet) that adblockers would have prevented this attack. There is a series of suppositions made here, and one or two shreds of evidence, which paint a plausible picture, but there is a bit of a risk of cognitive dissonance here.
I’m clutching at straws really. I really am quite fed up with BA’s attitude and handling of the whole thing
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Old Sep 11, 2018, 2:45 am
  #867  
 
Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: UK
Programs: BA Gold
Posts: 2,422
Originally Posted by toothy
Having previously stated this, having read more on it, for example on HFP, it is clear that they had a more serious PCI compliance issue. Most organisations use a third party to handle card transactions, who specialise in handling card transactions and are PCI compliant. It appears that BA haven't done it and are storing card details themselves.


T
The consultant, who flagged up this issue in the papers after being brought in to work on BA's payment systems, said he quit after reviewing their PCI report and seeing the failures in it. Now granted we don't know his background or motivations but If I were in his shoes it would have to be something pretty serious because being able to say that you successfully brought order to BA's payment systems would be very nice to have on ones brochure/LinkedIn profile. It is equally possible that the task was beyond his skills to complete which doesn't exactly paint a rosy picture either.
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Old Sep 11, 2018, 2:49 am
  #868  
 
Join Date: May 2006
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Originally Posted by Steve_ZA
The consultant, who flagged up this issue in the papers after being brought in to work on BA's payment systems, said he quit after reviewing their PCI report and seeing the failures in it. Now granted we don't know his background or motivations but If I were in his shoes it would have to be something pretty serious because being able to say that you successfully brought order to BA's payment systems would be very nice to have on ones brochure/LinkedIn profile. It is equally possible that the task was beyond his skills to complete which doesn't exactly paint a rosy picture either.
Equally it could have been within his skills to remedy, but BA didn’t like what was likely to be involved and wanted to do it as cheaply as possible.
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Old Sep 11, 2018, 2:54 am
  #869  
 
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Switzerland
Posts: 1,568
Originally Posted by Calchas
a nefarious party can inject code that runs in the user’s browser and, for example, captures key strokes.
There's a lot of guessing going on, based on a random comment that it was a "screen grab". If it were key logging, how come stored cards that were used, and names/addresses which were not typed, were also said to have been captured?

Of course, it is just as likely that BA is throwing random bits of information out there without knowing themselves what actually was captured. I really hope BA do give a definitive list of the data that was stolen, so we can all understand which bits of our information are out there.
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Old Sep 11, 2018, 3:07 am
  #870  
 
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Originally Posted by adrianlondon
There's a lot of guessing going on, based on a random comment that it was a "screen grab". If it were key logging, how come stored cards that were used, and names/addresses which were not typed, were also said to have been captured?

Of course, it is just as likely that BA is throwing random bits of information out there without knowing themselves what actually was captured. I really hope BA do give a definitive list of the data that was stolen, so we can all understand which bits of our information are out there.
You're right. There is lots of supposition going on. However, as I have a reasonable amount of knowledge in this area, I'd suggest that the screen grab comment wasn't plausible for many reasons, not least because the CVV is ***'ed out when you type it (but for other reasons as well, including that they would have to have access to customers' computers and phones rather than just the BA website). There are other options which I'd see as having more credibility. I would also be prepared to wager that stored cards were not impacted, even if used for the transaction, despite what BA has said. The thing is, it's a very technically and process complex area and it may be that BA is wholly reliant on 3rd party consultants to tell them what they think has happened and therefore what types of cards and purchases are impacted. In my team of 120-odd, I'd say that there are 10 who understand this even conceptually and maybe 2-3 who really understand the technical detail. It's very specialist.
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