More than 5,000 regular passengers on public transport in the capital have been contacted by Transport for London after their details were accessed by hackers in a cyber attack.
Card check: more than 5,000 TfL passengers have had their details hacked
Thousands more have also been written to, as TfL seeks to reassure them that their Oyster card and other travel passes will continue to function, without an annual renewal, until the organisation has rectified and secured its data and information systems following a security breach three weeks ago.
TfL has apologised, calling the attack “sophisticated” – which suggests that the teenager in Swindon who was arrested in connection with the cyber attack earlier this month is unlikely to be the instigating culprit behind the hack.
TfL’s letters to the passengers it has identified as having had their details accessed states that personal information such as bank account numbers and sort codes may have been compromised.
The TfL letter warns affected customers that this data “may have included name and contact details, preferences for customer marketing and Oyster card refund data including bank account and sort code”.
The letters have a unique identifier so any customers unsure about its validity can call customer services at TfL.
In other letters, to thousands more regular passengers requiring pass renewals, TfL has said: “We are currently dealing with an ongoing cyber security incident. Until this is resolved, as a precaution, our photocard website is unavailable.
“From our investigation so far, there is nothing to suggest that your photocard data has been compromised. Please note that while our website is down, your photocard will continue to work as normal.
“When our photocard systems are back up and running, we will write to you again to let you know when to complete the check.”
TfL has informed the Information Commissioner’s Office about the incident and said it was continuing to work with relevant government agencies about the breach.
Read more: Bank details for 5,000 TfL passengers accessed in cyber attack
Read more: Cyber attack forces TfL to suspend all Oyster card renewals
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