Cathay Pacific Airways has enlisted a company that was itself once caught up in a hacking scandal to help deal with the fallout of a data breach that affected more than 9 million passengers.
Asia’s biggest international carrier is offering customers hit by the hack - which saw passport details to emails illegally accessed - the option to take up a service provided by Experian to monitor whether their information is being misused online.
But the Nottingham, England-based credit-tracking firm had its own experience with hacking in 2015, when a breach saw the data of 15 million subscribers of T-Mobile US held on Experian’s servers exposed. The company was sued over the incident, along with the telecommunications provider.
Cathay has lost more than $320 million in market value since news of the hack broke, as investors and customers question the company’s handling of the situation. The airline, which said it first discovered the breach in March and confirmed it in May, didn’t disclose it until October 24, in a late-night statement to the Hong Kong stock exchange.
When queried on Experian’s history by Bloomberg News, Cathay declined to comment. The airline said the time taken to disclose the breach was mainly due to the complexity of the data, and because the event required considerable investigation. “We are focused now on assisting affected customers.”
The airline is just the latest company to have its data hacked, with Facebook and fellow air carriers British Airways and Delta Air Lines all targeted over the past year. While firms have spent millions of dollars on sophisticated tools to shield their computer networks from attack, data security has become increasingly challenging. Hackers are on the rise, with many stealing troves of personal data that can be sold on the black market and used to carry out financial crimes.
Experian helps track stolen data, when it shows up on websites, chat rooms, blogs or for sale in corners of the internet, often known as dark websites. It is entirely up to the user to decide how much information they want to share if they choose to subscribe to the one-year, free service, Cathay said in emails to affected passengers offering the service.
The security of customer data is “top priority” and Experian aims to provide protection and assistance to those affected, said Sisca Margaretta, the company’s Singapore-based chief marketing officer for Asia Pacific. Referring to the past incidents, she said Experian’s consumer credit database was not accessed and no payment card or banking information was obtained.
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Cathay Pacific data hack leaves 9.4 million passengers exposed and investors concerned
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“We actively monitor our systems and are continually updating our security protocols to protect data stored on our systems,” she said.
Laura Gabriela Politis, 36, a Cathay Pacific customer, said she isn’t sure she’d take up the offer to use the Experian service.
“That company has [had] a data breach themselves - and they’re asking for more information when your data has been compromised,” said the Hong Kong-based traveller, who often flies to Singapore, the US and Europe both for business and on vacation. “I still don’t understand why it took them months to let us know.”
The information accessed in the Cathay hack included names, nationalities, dates of birth, phone numbers, emails, physical addresses, numbers for passports, identity cards and frequent-flier programmes, as well as historical travel information. Flight safety wasn’t compromised and there was no evidence any information has been misused, Cathay said, without revealing details of the origin of the attack.
Hong Kong’s government said Friday it is “highly concerned” about the incident and has asked the airline to “fully cooperate” with the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data on a compliance check.
The delay in disclosing the breach could expose Cathay to lawsuits, said Robert Braun, a partner at Jeffer Mangels Butler & Mitchell in Los Angeles and co-chair of the firm’s cybersecurity and privacy group.
“That’s always a problem when you have that kind of delay,” he said.
“That means the information is out in the wild and people aren’t aware they can take steps to protect it.”
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Document everything immediately; including dates, times, locations and witnesses
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
match info
Southampton 2 (Ings 32' & pen 89') Tottenham Hotspur 5 (Son 45', 47', 64', & 73', Kane 82')
Man of the match Son Heung-min (Tottenham)
Email sent to Uber team from chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi
From: Dara
To: Team@
Date: March 25, 2019 at 11:45pm PT
Subj: Accelerating in the Middle East
Five years ago, Uber launched in the Middle East. It was the start of an incredible journey, with millions of riders and drivers finding new ways to move and work in a dynamic region that’s become so important to Uber. Now Pakistan is one of our fastest-growing markets in the world, women are driving with Uber across Saudi Arabia, and we chose Cairo to launch our first Uber Bus product late last year.
Today we are taking the next step in this journey—well, it’s more like a leap, and a big one: in a few minutes, we’ll announce that we’ve agreed to acquire Careem. Importantly, we intend to operate Careem independently, under the leadership of co-founder and current CEO Mudassir Sheikha. I’ve gotten to know both co-founders, Mudassir and Magnus Olsson, and what they have built is truly extraordinary. They are first-class entrepreneurs who share our platform vision and, like us, have launched a wide range of products—from digital payments to food delivery—to serve consumers.
I expect many of you will ask how we arrived at this structure, meaning allowing Careem to maintain an independent brand and operate separately. After careful consideration, we decided that this framework has the advantage of letting us build new products and try new ideas across not one, but two, strong brands, with strong operators within each. Over time, by integrating parts of our networks, we can operate more efficiently, achieve even lower wait times, expand new products like high-capacity vehicles and payments, and quicken the already remarkable pace of innovation in the region.
This acquisition is subject to regulatory approval in various countries, which we don’t expect before Q1 2020. Until then, nothing changes. And since both companies will continue to largely operate separately after the acquisition, very little will change in either teams’ day-to-day operations post-close. Today’s news is a testament to the incredible business our team has worked so hard to build.
It’s a great day for the Middle East, for the region’s thriving tech sector, for Careem, and for Uber.
Uber on,
Dara
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Dr Afridi's warning signs of digital addiction
Spending an excessive amount of time on the phone.
Neglecting personal, social, or academic responsibilities.
Losing interest in other activities or hobbies that were once enjoyed.
Having withdrawal symptoms like feeling anxious, restless, or upset when the technology is not available.
Experiencing sleep disturbances or changes in sleep patterns.
What are the guidelines?
Under 18 months: Avoid screen time altogether, except for video chatting with family.
Aged 18-24 months: If screens are introduced, it should be high-quality content watched with a caregiver to help the child understand what they are seeing.
Aged 2-5 years: Limit to one-hour per day of high-quality programming, with co-viewing whenever possible.
Aged 6-12 years: Set consistent limits on screen time to ensure it does not interfere with sleep, physical activity, or social interactions.
Teenagers: Encourage a balanced approach – screens should not replace sleep, exercise, or face-to-face socialisation.
Source: American Paediatric Association
