A cybercriminal group has breached the networks of several major US and Canadian airlines, the FBI reports, raising industry-wide alarm as summer travel peaks. While flight operations remain unaffected by the incursions the agency blamed on the group known as "Scattered Spider," officials warn the threat could have a broad impact, CNN reports. The hackers target large companies and their IT contractors, the FBI statement said, "which means anyone in the airline ecosystem, including trusted vendors and contractors, could be at risk." The FBI said it's working on the case with the airline industry.
Airlines including Hawaiian Airlines and Canada's WestJet are assessing the scope of breaches but have reported no disruption to flight operations. Google's cybersecurity unit Mandiant and Palo Alto Networks' security research division Unit 42 also said they've monitored the group's cyberattacks on the industry, per TechCrunch. The fact that airline operations haven't been affected is "likely a sign of good internal network separations or good business continuity and resiliency planning," said a former airport chief information security officer. This group usually goes after one business sector at a time, per CNN, and is a suspect in this month's cyberattack on Aflac.