Security

Keeping our customers safe: Cathay Pacific’s data breach

A very small number of our customers may have been affected by the Cathay Pacific data breach. Here's what we've been doing about it.

by Mihnea on 25 October 2018

Keeping our customers safe: Cathay Pacific’s data breach

Yesterday Cathay Pacific announced it had discovered suspicious activity on its network back in March 2018, and confirmed unauthorised access to some personal data in early May.

A very small number of our customers may have been affected. We’ve been in touch with all of them to let them know that, according to the Cathay Pacific statement, their card details should not have been accessed as part of this breach.

What information was breached?

Whilst Cathay Pacific has stated that there is no evidence that any data has been misused, it’s important to note that the following types of personal data of Cathay Pacific and Cathay Dragon passengers were accessed: passenger name; nationality; date of birth; phone number; email; address; passport number; identity card number; frequent flyer programme membership number; customer service remarks; and historical travel information. The combination of data accessed varied for each affected passenger, but no-one’s travel or loyalty profile was accessed in full, and no passwords were compromised.

What are we doing about it?

At Monese security is our utmost priority and we want to let you know that we’ve always got your back. When there’s a customer data breach like this, we always check to ensure you, your details and your finances are safe. Since the Cathay Pacific announcement we ran checks for all our customers. A very small number of our customers had transacted with Cathay Pacific. We checked these accounts for any suspicious or unusual activity and we found no suspicious transactions, nor did we find any reports for unauthorised transactions.

We have an exceptional anti-fraud team here at Monese. This team monitors for suspicious activity in real time, all the time.

What about passport details?

Cathay Pacific announced that passport details may have been compromised as part of this breach. Your passport details are incredibly sensitive.

If you believe you may have been affected, you can submit a request to Cathay Pacific here and the airline will tell you if it has identified your personal data as having been accessed. Cathay Pacific is also offering ID monitoring services to affected passengers.

If Cathay Pacific confirms that your passport details have been affected, we also recommend that you check with your passport issuer on the steps you should take next.

We take every step possible to protect you, your details and your finances. These have been the key foundations of our business since the very beginning.

If you have any questions about this, our support team is always here to help!

We love lifting the bonnet here at Monese HQ and showing you who, and how we go about keeping you, your details and your finances safe. Expect more on this in the coming weeks…