SpiceJet Airlines experienced a ransomware attack on their systems which was attributed to delayed flights. Hundreds of passengers were left stranded at various airports due to the attack that impacted morning flight departures on Wednesday.
The controversy started after a passenger, Mudit Shejwar, tweeted that he had been stuck at the airport for over four hours after the plane boarded and had no response from the team.
SpiceJet replied to the tweet saying its Wednesday morning flights had been affected due to a ransomware attack the previous night. The attack, which took place the previous night, has not been remediated but the airline claims its IT support is on it.
Similar complaints from passengers flooded the indian airline wall on Twitter on Wednesday. One such is from a passenger who was infuriated by the delay and tweeted is anger, asking if the delay happened a regular basis.
Passengers also complained about non-functioning websites and customer care numbers. One passenger said that he was unable to rebook his flight from their website and the customer care number didn’t go through.
Why Target Spicejet?
The ransomware attack came only a few days after SpiceJet revealed its plans to start a broadband internet service on its planes. In 2020, the Airport Authority of India (AAI) put the airliner in cash and carry mode because of its failure to clear airport dues.
Some passengers believed the delay was a result of non-payments which forced Air Traffic Control to stop flights from taking off days ago. SpiceJet confirmed on its social media that the delay was not because of non-payments to the AAI, but because of the ransomware attacks they had experienced.
India has been subject to many cyber attacks recently. One of the largest was a ransomware attack on its Oil refinery that saw the it lose millions in funds.
