Hackers ground Polish airliners

LOT flights cancelled after unknown hackers target traffic control

Polish airline LOT was forced to cancel flights after unidentified computer hackers targeted its networks.

More than 1,400 passengers were affected by the cyber attack, which targeted computers responsible for issuing flight plans at Warsaw's Okecie airport. In total, 10 flights were cancelled and 12 were delayed before services returned to normal on Sunday evening.

"We're using state-of-the-art computer systems, so this could potentially be a threat to others in the industry," said LOT spokesperson Adrian Kubrick.

Airline authorities are now investigating the attack in an effort to determine who was responsible.

David Emm, principal security researcher at Kaspersky Lab, argued that the cyber attack against the airline is a stark warning that organisations must ensure that their systems are as secure as possible.

"At the moment we have no idea how the attack on Polish airline LOT was launched, the nature of the systems targeted or what the motives of the attackers may have been, beyond the fact that the attack affected ancillary systems rather than the planes themselves," he said.

"This story highlights the fact that, as more and more aspects of our lives become cyber-dependent, we offer a greater attack surface to cyber criminals - including critical infrastructure systems. It also follows on from recent concerns about possible threats to aeroplane security from Wi-Fi," Emm continued.

"It's essential that all organisations pay close attention to security, assessing the potential risks and deploying defence in-depth to reduce the risks," he added.

The source of the attack against LOT is not yet known and the very nature of cyber crime means that it's possible that the culprits may never be found. Indeed, security expert Bruce Schneier recently warned that it's almost impossible to determine if who the perpetrators of cyber attacks actually are.

"We're actually living in a world where you can be attacked and not know if it is a nuclear-powered government with a $20bn military budget or a couple of guys in a basement somewhere. That's actually a legitimate thing to be unsure about. That's freaky," said Schneier.

"The same tactics and targeting and weaponry are used by everybody", he added.