Was United attacked by Chinese hackers?

Ever since hacker Chris Roberts warned airlines about security vulnerabilities this spring, carriers have been freaking out about their potential to be hacked. The issue became very real when hackers grounded 1,400 flights in Warsaw last month.

Now it looks like United Airlines could be the latest victim of a cyber attack. From Bloomberg:

"United, the world’s second-largest airline, detected an incursion into its computer systems in May or early June, said several people familiar with the probe. According to three of these people, investigators working with the carrier have linked the attack to a group of China-backed hackers they say are behind several other large heists -- including the theft of security-clearance records from the U.S. Office of Personnel Management and medical data from health insurer Anthem Inc.

The previously unreported United breach raises the possibility that the hackers now have data on the movements of millions of Americans, adding airlines to a growing list of strategic U.S. industries and institutions that have been compromised.

Hmm, well that's mildly terrifying. And furthermore, there is now speculation that at least one of two systems failures in the past couple of months could be related. United, which has yet to officially announce (or deny) the security breach, is working to tamp down concerns as it continues to investigate. In an email statement, a spokesman for United told Road Warrior Voices:

“These reports are based on pure speculation, and we can assure our customers that their personal information is secure. We remain vigilant in protecting against unauthorized access and use top advisors and best practices on cyber-security to maintain our effectiveness.”

One thing that can be confirmed is the airline's commitment to finding any holes in its security, as it has even offered bounties to anyone able to find flaws or vulnerabilities in its website or app, and recently gave 1 million miles to a security researcher for discovering two bugs. Of course, with airline miles rapidly devaluing, the airline might have to start paying real money to hackers if it wants to get serious about protecting itself and its customers.