SpiceJet flight operations were impacted yesterday after the airline was hit by an attempted ransomware attack. Many flights were delayed by almost 4 hours or were even cancelled. The Indian airline service had tweeted that specific flight operation systems were targeted. However, their IT teams were able to contain the attack and fix the issues. SpiceJet is also working closely with the cybercrime authorities and other experts to take a closer look at the event.
The cyber attack impacted the flight operations at airports across the country as well as their ticketing systems. Some users were unable to book tickets from the company’s website.
Due to the sudden turn of events, the company furthermore cancelled flights to and from destinations within the country where restrictions were in place for night operations. This left many travelers stranded at airports. Many have also taken to social media to highlight that they were unable to find any cab services to the nearest hotel. Others who already boarded their flights were stranded on runways for almost 4 hours.
#Update: Certain SpiceJet systems faced an attempted ransomware attack last night that has impacted our flight operations. While our IT team has to a large extent contained and rectified the situation, this has had a cascading effect on our flights leading to delays. >>May 25, 2022
While the ransomware attack happened on the night of May 24, the company’s operations had a cascading impact even for flights in the morning. Travellers were further unhappy that they were not informed before they arrived at the airports.
Ransomware attacks haven’t stopped
Ransomware attacks were quite frequent at one time. After the Covid-19 outbreak, the frequency of ransomware and other modes of cyber attacks increased. Many experts in the industry have informed companies that they should strengthen their systems.
India itself has seen an increase of 70% in ransomware attacks, especially on critical infrastructure, according to another report. A major contributor to this has been the new Ransomware as a Service (RaaS) model. It also suggests that the pandemic is not the only contributor to the rise of cyber attack activities. Many organisations in the country delayed implementing stronger cyber security measures.
Scope and need for cybersecurity are growing
Cyber security jobs and certifications have been in demand over the past 2 years. Many have been able to upskill themselves through their own organisations as well. This has allowed many organisations now to quickly find the right talent and strengthen their systems. Many experts in the IT industry claim that cybersecurity will be essential for many businesses going forward, including cloud security.
Source: PCMag, Business Standard
