The personal data of about 8.7 million customers has been compromised in a cyberattack targeting three major airports in the United Kingdom.
Manchester Airports Group (MAG), which operates Manchester, London Stansted and East Midlands airports, disclosed the breach on Thursday, saying airport operations and flights were not affected.
The company said the cyberattack occurred over the weekend and was discovered on Tuesday.
Compromised information included customers’ email addresses, phone numbers, vehicle registration details and postcodes.
MAG said the affected data related to bookings for airport car parks, lounges and Fast Track services, as well as registrations for in-airport WiFi.
Despite the scale of the breach, the company said there had been no operational disruption.
“The incident has not resulted in any operational disruption and airport operations remain unaffected,” MAG said in a statement.
The group also stressed that passenger safety and aviation security had not been compromised, while bank and payment information was not affected by the incident.
MAG attributed the breach to an “unauthorised third party” but did not provide further details about the attacker or the method used to gain access to its systems.
The airport operator said it had immediately taken steps to contain the incident and engaged specialist advisers to investigate the breach and strengthen protections for customers and its systems.
The cyberattack comes amid heightened concerns over digital security in the UK following a series of attacks targeting major businesses in the country.
Companies including carmaker Jaguar Land Rover and retailers Marks and Spencer, Harrods and the Co-op food chain were among businesses affected by cyber incidents last year.
