Thomas Cook India has announced that its IT infrastructure is under cyberattack. The travel services provider is working with security experts to investigate the incident and will take necessary remedial actions. Upon discovering the incident, the company promptly investigated and responded, including shutting down affected systems.
The company’s India operations are headquartered in Mumbai. After the announcement, we at the TOI tech desk checked the company’s website, which displayed an Error 503 on its homepage. Google search results led to an error page instead of the travel agency’s website.
Microsoft’s official support blog explains that Error 503 occurs when a website is intentionally stopped by its owner. In the blog, senior engineer Pradeep Sharma notes: “The ‘503 Service Unavailable’ message usually appears when the application pool is in a stopped state.”
Read the company’s statement here.
“There has been an incident involving a cyber attack on our IT infrastructure,” Thomas Cook said in a regulatory filing with BSE.
However, the company didn’t disclose the exact timelines. Still, it said, “Immediately upon becoming aware of the incident, we took the necessary steps to investigate and respond to it, including shutting down affected systems.”
“We are working with leading cyber security experts to support our investigation and identify the extent of the issue and take remedial action as necessary,” Thomas Cook added.
Last month, Thomas Cook India launched Video KYC for retail foreign exchange buyers, enabling digital transactions without needing in-person interactions.
This feature allows customers to opt for home delivery of forex currency within two hours after completing the Aadhaar-based Video KYC verification.
The Video KYC process involves two simple steps: customers log in to the company’s website, select their desired currency, and choose the Video KYC with home delivery option. After uploading documents and completing identity verification via a video call, the forex is delivered directly to their doorstep, eliminating the need for branch visits.
This service can load or top up prepaid forex cards, make fund transfers, and buy or sell foreign exchange. Thomas Cook serves over a million retail customers annually through its various channels.
