Mysterious 'cybercriminal' makes contact with Qantas a week after the data of SIX MILLION customers was stolen
Last week, the airline detected a hack that potentially compromised the names, dates of birth, email addresses and frequent flyer numbers of six million customers.
Qantas have not disclosed whether the hacker, or any group they might be affiliated with, have demanded a ransom.
A Qantas spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia: 'A potential cybercriminal has made contact and we are currently working to validate this.
'As this is a criminal matter, we have engaged the Australian Federal Police and won't be commenting any further on the detail of the contact.
'There is no evidence that any personal data stolen from Qantas has been released but, with the support of specialist cyber security experts, we continue to actively monitor.'
The airline said earlier in July a third-party system used by an offshore call centre had been attacked two days earlier.
Unusual activity detected on the third-party platform used by the airline's contact centre in Manila , prompted an investigation.
Qantas confirmed the breach last Wednesday.
The airline said no credit card details, personal financial information or passport details were held on the hacked platform.
No frequent flyers accounts were compromised and Qantas stated the bread had been 'contained'.
The airline warned customers to remain 'alert for unusual communications claiming to be from Qantas'.
New security measures have been added for customers' frequent flyer accounts, including requiring extra identification for any charges.
Since the attack was revealed, Qantas has received more than 5000 customer inquiries.
'I want to apologise again for the uncertainty this has caused,' chief executive Vanessa Hudson said.
'We know that data breaches can feel deeply personal and understand the genuine concern this creates for our customers.
'Right now we're focused on providing the answers and transparency they deserve.'
Legal experts suggest the incident could lead to a class action against Qantas after compensation claims were made against Optus and Medibank following major breaches in 2022.
The Optus data breach saw hackers gain access to names, phone numbers and drivers licences of the telecommunications giant's customers.
A ransomware gang also breached Medibank Private, sharing private customer data online in a bid to blackmail the health insurer into paying a ransom.
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