The tenth-largest commercial airline in the United States, Hawaiian Airlines, is currently investigating a significant cyberattack. This security incident has disrupted access to some of the major airline’s important internal information technology systems. With over 7,000 employees and a fleet of over sixty airplanes, the airline is a major travel provider. Hawaiian Airlines connects the state of Hawai’i with fifteen U.S. mainland cities and ten other international destinations. The airline issued a statement on Thursday morning confirming the incident did not affect any of its flight safety.
Hawaiian Airlines stated its highest priority is the safety and security of both its guests and all employees.
The company has taken many steps to safeguard its operations, and its flights are operating safely and as scheduled. Upon learning of this incident, the company engaged the appropriate authorities to assist in its official investigation. The airline has also hired many external cybersecurity experts to fully assess the attack’s significant impact. These same experts will also help the airline to restore all of the affected systems as quickly as possible. The airline is currently working toward an orderly restoration and will provide updates as more information is available.
A banner on the airline’s website notes that this incident has not impacted any of its flights in any way.
The same exact alert is also being displayed on the official Alaska Airlines website, which acquired Hawaiian Airlines. The Federal Aviation Administration told the Reuters news agency that it is currently monitoring the entire situation. Currently, it is unclear whether the airline’s systems were affected by a ransomware attack or were shut down. The airline has yet to disclose the nature of the attack, and no group has claimed any responsibility. A Hawaiian Airlines spokesperson was not immediately available for comment when contacted by BleepingComputer earlier on Thursday.
This recent incident unfortunately follows a very similar attack that affected the major airline WestJet on June 13th. That specific cyberattack on WestJet, which is Canada’s second-largest airline, prevented customers from accessing its mobile app. The attack on WestJet also prevented customers from being able to access the airline’s main public-facing website. WestJet is also currently collaborating with its own third-party forensic experts to investigate the recent cyberattack. The airline has also engaged with law enforcement to fulfill all of its many different regulatory reporting obligations.
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