Japan Airlines.
Tokyo: There has been a major cyber attack on Japan Airlines (JAL). Hundreds of flights have been affected by this. Japan Airlines said more than 20 of its domestic flights were delayed due to a cyber attack on Thursday. While many other flights were also affected. However, the company claims that it restored its system after a few hours. This did not have any major impact on flight safety. JAL said the problem began on Thursday morning when the network connecting the company’s internal and external systems began to malfunction.
The airline said it determined the reason for this was that the attack was aimed at disrupting network systems from mass transmission of data. Such attacks cause the system or network to become extremely busy until the targeted response is achieved or the system crashes. JAL said the attack did not involve any viruses and did not leak any customer data. By morning, 24 domestic flights were delayed by more than 30 minutes due to the cyber attack, it said.
Experts expressed concern
Experts have repeatedly raised concerns about the weaknesses of Japan’s cybersecurity, especially as the country builds its defense capabilities and works closely with the United States and other partners, where cybersecurity is more stringent. Is. Japan has taken steps, but experts say more work is needed. In June, Japan’s space agency said it had faced frequent cyberattacks since 2023, although rockets, satellites and sensitive defense-related information were not affected. The agency is investigating to take preventive measures. Last year, a cyberattack halted operations for three days at a container terminal at a port in the city of Nagoya.
Ticket sales stopped due to flights being affected
JAL’s ticket sales for both domestic and international flights departing on Thursday were temporarily halted but later resumed. The Transport Ministry has asked JAL to accelerate efforts to restore the system and accommodate affected passengers, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi told a regular press conference on Thursday. Television footage showed crowds at several passenger terminals at Tokyo’s Haneda Airport as the attack coincided with the year-end holiday season. (Language)
