SYDNEY— Qantas Airways (QF), Australia’s flagship carrier, has cut its Chief Executive Officer’s annual bonus following a data breach that compromised sensitive passenger information. The airline announced that the reduction in executive pay reflects its commitment to accountability and transparency during a period of heightened public and regulatory scrutiny.
The decision comes after Qantas confirmed that customer details linked to its Frequent Flyer program were exposed earlier this year. The breach, though not involving credit card or passport numbers, affected thousands of passengers across Sydney (SYD) and other major hubs.
Photo: Tobias GudatQantas CEO Bonus Cuts
Qantas stated that the CEO’s bonus reduction was approved by the remuneration committee after a review of the incident.
Qantas CEO, Vanessa Hudson, is set to earn A$6.3 million (US$4.09 million) for the financial year ending June 30, which includes a short-term bonus of A$2.04 million that was reduced by A$250,000 as part of the penalty.
This total remains significantly lower than the A$23.9 million awarded to former CEO Alan Joyce at the peak of his leadership in 2018.
Photo- Aero Icarus from Zürich, Switzerland; Wikimedia CommonsDetails of Data Breach
The breach impacted customer accounts linked to the Qantas Frequent Flyer system.
While the airline confirmed that no financial information was compromised, the scale of the breach triggered strong concerns among regulators and consumer groups.
The breach, revealed in July, involved a Qantas call centre database that stored information on 6 million individuals, including names, email addresses, phone numbers, dates of birth, and frequent flyer details.
Photo: QantasRecent Aviation Data Breaches
In 2023, hackers accessed personal details of individuals who applied for pilot and cadet positions at American Airlines and Southwest Airlines.
The details included names, social security numbers, passport details, dates of birth, and driver’s license information. Earlier this year, reports of 42,000 records having been stolen from ICAO had surfaced.
Following the breach, Qantas Airways (QF) has invested in upgraded security systems. The airline confirmed it is expanding its IT department and implementing stricter internal monitoring.
According to company officials, the improvements will align Qantas with international aviation cybersecurity standards. The measures are designed to protect passenger records, reduce risks of hacking attempts, and rebuild customer trust.
Photo: By Bidgee, CC BY-SA 3.0 au, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=95821870Bottom Line
Although the breach did not affect payment systems, nor did it reveal personal financial information and passport details of the affected passengers, there was frustration over the handling of their personal information.
The data breach also meant that Qantas had suffered a heavy blow following the record A$90 million fine it had to pay for unlawfully sacking 1,800 ground staff during COVID-19.
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The post Qantas CEO Bonus Cut After Massive Data Breach appeared first on Aviation A2Z.
