Qantas Data Breach Exposes 6 Million Records
Date: July 2nd, 2025
By: TheCyberGuyAU
What happened?
On Monday, Qantas detected unusual activity on a third-party system used by its call centre. That system was compromised, exposing records for 6 million customers.
A “significant proportion” of the data was stolen, including:
- ✅ Names
- ✅ Email addresses
- ✅ Phone numbers
- ✅ Dates of birth
- ✅ Frequent flyer numbers
The good news? Qantas says no credit card data, passport numbers, or login credentials were involved.
“Our customers trust us with their personal information and we take that responsibility seriously.”
— Qantas CEO Vanessa Hudson
Who’s behind it?
Qantas hasn’t officially confirmed the attacker, but CyberCX analysts say it appears to be Scattered Spider — an aggressive international threat group.
The FBI recently warned about this group’s focus on aviation and third-party systems.
Why this matters
This breach is a wake-up call for any business using external vendors:
- ⚠️ Supply chain attacks are real and growing
- ⚠️ Even non-financial data can be weaponized
- ⚠️ Vendors must be audited, and response plans tested
Just because passwords weren’t stolen doesn’t mean the data isn’t dangerous.
What Qantas is doing now
- 🛡️ Quarantined the affected system
- 📢 Notified impacted customers
- 🔍 Brought in CyberCX for response
- 📡 Informed the ACSC, OAIC, and AFP
A hotline and support page have also been launched for affected customers.
What businesses can learn
This should be a red flag for companies in:
- 🛫 Travel & transport
- 📞 Outsourced customer service
- 💻 IT infrastructure and SaaS vendors
Key takeaways:
- ✅ Audit vendors regularly
- 🔍 Reassess the value of “non-sensitive” data
- 📄 Test incident response plans
- 🎣 Monitor for phishing after breaches
Final Thoughts
6 million records isn’t just a number — it’s 6 million opportunities for phishing, scams, or identity theft.
Cyber threats are evolving. Your security mindset must evolve too.
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📣 Share this post with your team or clients to raise awareness about supply chain risks.
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