A cyberattack has targeted three major airports in the United Kingdom, compromising the personal data of approximately 8.7 million customers, according to Manchester Airports Group (MAG), which operates Manchester Airport, London Stansted Airport and East Midlands Airport.
MAG said the attack did not disrupt airport operations or affect flights. Passenger and aviation security were also not compromised.
The stolen information includes email addresses, telephone numbers, vehicle registration numbers and postcodes. The company said banking and payment information was not affected.
The incident occurred over the weekend, while MAG was informed of the breach on Tuesday.
The compromised customer data was connected to several airport services, including parking reservations, airport lounge bookings, Fast Track services and registrations for terminal Wi-Fi networks.
MAG described the attacker as an “unauthorized third party” but did not provide further details about the identity of the hackers or their possible motives.
The airport group said it immediately took steps to contain the incident and reduce the risk to customers and its systems.
“We immediately contained the risk and are working with specialist advisers, taking the appropriate measures to protect our customers and our systems,” MAG said in a statement.
Despite the scale of the data breach, all three airports continue to operate normally, with no reported impact on passenger safety or air traffic.
The incident highlights the growing cybersecurity risks facing critical transport infrastructure, where breaches can expose large volumes of sensitive customer information even when physical airport operations remain unaffected.
