Ryanair, a Dublin-based airline which is run by Michael O’Leary, confirmed about a hacking scam in which about $5 million (€4.6 million) was transferred via a Chinese bank from one of its bank accounts.
However, the airline is not ready to comment on anything as the issue has now gone in to legal proceedings.
According to a report published on The Irish Times the amount was stolen from the account last week through electronic transfer.
Only when the airline asked Criminal Assets Bureau (CAB) in Dublin, to help in its recovery via counterpart agencies in Asia, the incident came into light.
“The airline confirms that it has investigated a fraudulent electronic transfer via a Chinese bank last week,” wrote in a statement by the airline.
It said that the airline has been working with its banks and other stake holders to understand that the funds less than $5 million have now been frozen.
It is expected that the funds will be repaid soon. However, the airline has taken steps to ensure that this type of incident won’t happen again in the future.
As the airline uses dollars to buy fuel for its 400-plus Boeing 737-800 aircraft, it is believed that these funds have been tapped in this illegal transfer.
But there is still no clue about how the hacking scam was operated and the hacker.
The CAB has used its connections with similar agencies in Asia to trace the money.
