UK arrests man in airport ransomware attack that caused delays across Europe

"The UK's National Crime Agency arrested a man in West Sussex in connection with a ransomware attack that caused significant flight delays last week and forced many airlines to check passengers and luggage manually. The cyberattack impacted several airports across Europe, including London's Heathrow and Berlin's Brandenburg. The agency shared little about the arrest in its announcement today other than that the target was "a man in his forties" and that he was released on conditional bail as the investigation progresses."

"The attack targeted the Multi-User System Environment ( MUSE) used by airports, a piece of software developed by Collins Aerospace which allows multiple airlines to share a single check-in desk. While some larger airlines like British Airways were able to switch to a backup system and minimize the impact, many smaller providers resorted to manually checking-in passengers, something that has largely fallen out of favor in the era of smartphones and self-serve kiosks."

NCA arrested a man in his forties in West Sussex in connection with a ransomware attack that caused major flight delays and forced manual passenger and luggage checks. The cyberattack affected multiple European airports, including London's Heathrow and Berlin's Brandenburg. The man was released on conditional bail while the investigation continues. The attack targeted the Multi-User System Environment (MUSE), software by Collins Aerospace that lets multiple airlines share a single check-in desk. Larger carriers such as British Airways switched to a backup system to reduce disruption. Many smaller airlines reverted to manual check-ins. Sources point to simple Ransomware-as-a-Service tools—Hardbit or a Loki variant—commonly used in smaller-scale attacks, making the wide impact unusual.

Read at The Verge