Qantas cyber attack highlights urgent need for strong aviation ombuds scheme

CHOICE response to today’s Qantas cyber attack, which has left millions of customer records at risk of a data breach. 

Quotes attributable to Bea Sherwood, Senior Campaigns and Policy Advisor at CHOICE:

“Today’s cyber attack on Qantas has left millions of customer records at serious risk of being stolen, highlighting the urgent need for a strong aviation ombuds scheme to support airline customers and facilitate complaints when incidents like this occur.” 

“This is not the first time Qantas customers have had issues with the airline, with CHOICE giving the company a Shonky Award in 2022 for unusable flight credits, delayed flights, and more.” 

“Despite ongoing issues with Qantas and other airlines since, customers still don’t have an effective means of directing or resolving their complaints. The Australian Financial Complaints Authority and the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman consider financial and telco complaints, including about data breaches. There is currently no equivalent independent body for airline customers to raise concerns – a huge gap in our consumer protection system.”

“As consumer concerns about use of their data grow, and airline operations become more data driven, a robust aviation ombuds scheme is more important than ever. We look forward to seeing the government establish a strong aviation ombuds scheme which can facilitate and investigate consumer complaints, including those related to data privacy.”