Explainer | After 3 Hong Kong data breaches, here’s how to protect your private info
Customers’ details held by Cathay Pacific, Louis Vuitton and Hongkong Post targeted in recent string of data breaches
As digital threats evolve, the Post talks to experts about what went wrong, what consumers should watch out for and how companies can tighten their security.
1. What happened?
Cathay Pacific on Thursday disclosed that its Asia Miles loyalty programme had been the target of a data breach, with personal details, travel information and air mileage from 1,000 accounts compromised. No credit card information was leaked.
The airline said it had resolved the breach and reinstated the stolen air miles. It also urged customers to use passkeys and warned of phishing attempts.
Earlier in the week, Hongkong Post revealed its EC-Ship online mailing portal was hit by a cyberattack, potentially compromising the personal data of tens of thousands of account holders.
The breach was detected on Sunday and involved robotic access, which means automated software bots repeatedly targeted the system’s address book function to extract sender and recipient details, including names, phone and fax numbers, and email addresses.