Berlin-Brandenburg International Airport in Berlin, Germany, was among four airports across Europe working to restore normal operations on Monday in the wake of a malicious ransomware attack that crippled critical IT systems used to check in and board passengers. File Photo by Adam Berry/EPA-EFE
Sept. 22 (UPI) -- As a cyberattack that plunged European air passengers into chaos stretched into a third day, the European Union said Monday that it wasn't an isolated incident and criminal gangs were using ransomware to disrupt airport IT around the world.
Malicious ransomware was used to infect software used in airport automatic check-in and boarding systems, the EU Agency for Cybersecurity told the BBC, although it made no mention of any ransom being demanded in exchange for unfreezing the systems.
The gang behind the attack is, as yet, unidentified, but such groups usually demand payment in bitcoin, which cannot be subsequently traced.
European airports, including Brussels, Berlin, and Dublin were continuing efforts to return to normal, with London Heathrow requesting airlines continue to check in and board their passengers manually, leaked international communications showed.
