The UK’s national crime agency (NCA) has arrested a man during its investigation into a cyberattack that disrupted check-ins and delayed flights at several major European airports over the weekend.
The NCA arrested a man in his (40s) in West Sussex, a county in the south of England, on suspicion of offences under the UK’s Computer Misuse Act, the agency said in a statement Wednesday. He has been released on conditional bail, it added.
The investigation continues and is in its “early stages,” according to Paul Foster, head of the agency’s cyber unit.
The cyberattack, which began on Friday last week, affected an important provider of software that underpins check-in and boarding systems, snarling travel at London Heathrow, Dublin, Berlin Brandenburg and Brussels airports through the weekend.
The attack targeted a software system called MUSE, operated by US firm Collins Aerospace. Hackers used ransomware to lock down the company’s systems and render them inoperable, according to the European Union Agency for Cybersecurity.
[ Dublin Airport continuing to manage fallout from cyberattackOpens in new window ]
“We understand the United Kingdom National Crime Agency has made an arrest and appreciate their ongoing assistance in this matter,” RTX Corp., Collins Aerospace’s parent company, said in a statement. RTX previously said it was working to regain “full functionality to our customers as quickly as possible”.
With kiosks and bag-drop machines offline, airports have been forced to rely on manual processing, slowing passenger flows and resulting in flight delays and cancellations.
Disruption in London and Berlin had eased by Monday. Heathrow airport said in a statement on Tuesday that most of its flights were departing as normal, but added that it had deployed additional staff in terminals to assist passengers.
Passengers travelling via Brussels Airport have continued to face some delays and cancellations, with the airport advising that there would be “limited disruption” on Wednesday. The airport has asked passengers to check in online in advance of their scheduled flights. – Bloomberg
