easyJet data breach: the biggest of 2020?

Last week, the easyJet data breach hit the headlines and may have become the biggest incident in 2020 so far, and it may remain as that for the rest of the year.

The reason is that a monumental 9 million people in the UK have been affected by the cyberattack. When you look at how this compares to other recent incidents, which we’ll outline below, it’s a staggering number. It seems likely that this will go down as one of the biggest incidents of all time to hit the UK.

Our expert data breach lawyers are also investigating the issues as the airline undertakes the mammoth job of notifying millions of customers that their personal data has been exposed in the breach.

About the easyJet data breach

The easyJet data breach may well be one of the biggest we could ever see given the number of people that have been affected by it. With 9 million people’s personal information exposed in the cyberattack, it’s simply staggering in terms of its size and scale.

We understand that contact information and travel data is involved in the breach. The credit card details for 2,208 customers was also exposed, which has put those individuals at an immediate risk of fraud. For everyone else, the risks of scams remain as this data can be enough for criminals to target people for scams and fraud also.

The matter has been reported to the Information Commissioner’s Office, and easyJet has been told to contact victims as soon as it can. They have a big job on their hands to notify 9 million people that their personal data has been exposed in the breach in what is the latest in an awfully long line of travel and tourism sector incidents. Hackers target this sector given the nature and the wealth of information that they get try and get access to.

How it compares to other breaches

If we look at some of the recent data breaches to have hit the headlines, many of which we represent clients for, here’s how things shape up:

• Virgin Media data leak: 900,000 people affected;
• British Airways cyberattack: just under 500,000 customers affected;
• Watford Community Housing data breach: 3,500 involved;
• Charing Cross Gender Identify Clinic leak: approximate 2,000.

Of course, these are just some of the incidents that have affected people in the UK in recent times. They’re all legal actions that we represent people for.

The easyJet data breach is ten times the size of the largest one in that list at 9 million people affected. It’s self-explanatory that this is a significant and serious incident.

Have you received notification of the breach?

If you have received confirmation that you’ve been affected by the easyJet data breach, we may be able to help you.

It’s early days and we need to determine how the attack happened and whether anything could have been done to have prevented it. If more could, and should, have been done, victims could be entitled to claim compensation.

We are investigating the issues with the view to take cases forward for victims on a No Win, No Fee basis.