Latvia’s airBaltic accidentally exposed passengers’ data

Latvia’s air carrier, airBaltic, has admitted a technical error that exposed the reservation details of its passengers to other travelers. Some passengers have also reported receiving unwanted e-mails in another passenger’s name.

The air carrier claimed that the leak affected a small percentage of its customers and that they had not exposed any financial or payment information. However, the airline has not revealed the total number of affected individuals.

 

The airBaltic carrier accidentally leaked passenger bookings.

 

Earlier this week, several airBaltic passengers reported receiving e-mails that should be for other passengers. Not long after, the airline started e-mailing customers about a data leak issue that accidentally exposed their booking information to other consumers.

One such e-mail from a passenger stated that the exposed information could have included personal data such as names, dates of birth, and e-mail addresses.

An airBaltic representative revealed that the accidental data leak had affected several reservations this year. In addition, the company spokesperson confirmed that earlier this month, they suffered a technical problem in the airBaltic e-mail distribution system, which resulted in a few passengers receiving unsolicited e-mails containing details of a flight from another passenger.

Additionally, the airline carrier company clarified that the percentage represents the impacted reservation, not the passengers. Hence, the incident could have resulted in a minor issue.

This detail also implies that the leaked e-mails did not include payment methods, sensitive information, and other financial details. The company also added that they prioritise protecting its customers’ data and guarantees that the incident did not affect the personal information of the non-involved passengers. The notification ends with the company explaining that they have already addressed the incident.

However, some passengers still expressed concerns since the exposed information includes sensitive booking details such as the PNR and reservation number that could allow unauthorised individuals to modify the itinerary. Therefore, the affected individuals urge the airline to provide them with a new booking number.

Cybersecurity researchers advised the affected customers to contact airBaltic and to not take the issue lightly.