Knee-jerk corporate responses to data leaks protect brands like Qantas — but consumers are getting screwed
It’s become the playbook for big Australian companies that have customer data stolen in a cyber-attack: call in the lawyers and get a court to block anyone from accessing it.Qantas ran it after suffering a major cybersecurity attack that accessed the frequent flyer details of 5 million customers.The airline joined the long list of companies in Australia, dating back to the HWL Ebsworth breach in 2023, to go to the New South Wals supreme court to obtain an injunction against “persons unknown” – banning the hackers (and anyone else) from accessing or using the data under threat of prosecution.Of course, it didn’t stop hackers leaking the customer data on the dark web a few months later.But it might have come as a surprise when the ID protection company Equifax this month began alerting Qantas customers that their data had been leaked – since access to the data was supposedly banned.
This highlights the major flaw in the injunction scheme.Qantas argues the injunction protects customers, but cybersecurity experts warn that in practice it has the opposite effect: scammers will ignore it, while organisations based in Australia and operating within the law will not be able to verify the data and report on it.Sign up: AU Breaking News emailTroy Hunt, an Australian who operates the HaveIBeenPwned website which notifies users when their information appeared in breaches, is frustrated that he has not been able to include the breach in his searchable database.“Clearly the injunction has not stopped even legally operating organisations from accessing the data and communicating with the customers,” he said.“[Qantas is] obviously trying to minimise damage, and they will inevitably get raked over the coals with class actions, because it happens to every big company that has a breach now … but there is just no measurable, practical benefit that anyone can assign to keeping this data out of the hands of people like [me], whilst it’s in the hands of people who are now abusing it.
”Hunt noted the irony that Qantas’s cybersecurity incident statement on its website links out to government resources for customers caught up in a breach.Those resources advise customers to visit Hunt’s website so they can better protect themselves by being aware of what information is out there.How Equifax approached the injunction is unclear.The company said it uses the cybersecurity company Norton to monitor the dark web.Norton’s parent company Gen Digital is based in the US and Czechia while Equifax is US-based.
Norton did not deny it had accessed the data when asked twice by Guardian Australia, saying in a statement it is “contractually obligated to notify customers” when their information is posted on the dark web.Sign up to Breaking News AustraliaGet the most important news as it breaksafter newsletter promotion“These alerts are part of our ongoing commitment to help victims of a data breach protect their personal information and respond quickly if their data is at risk,” the spokesperson said.“This service operates under strict business, privacy, and compliance standards to ensure accuracy and lawful handling of all data sources.”Qantas would not confirm if it was considering pursuing companies for potential contraventions of the injunction, but indicated it was monitoring third-parties and would consider them on a case-by-case basis.“We are aware of notifications being sent to some of our customers by a third-party providers.
These notifications include types of personal information that was not held in the system impacted in our July cyber incident,” the spokesperson said.According to screenshots from the Telegram group run by the hackers, posted this month by Hunt, the hackers are aware of the limitations of the injunction.“qantas why are you lying to your citizens?” the message states.“all your injunction does is prevent media/journalists.”“YOUR data WILL be released and it WILL BE accessed.
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Talking Horses | Willie Mullins eyes Melbourne and Breeders’ Cup double after shock triumph
If five wins from the seven turf events, one short of the record, felt like a standard return for European runners at the 2025 Breeders’ Cup at Del Mar, then the identity of the biggest winner of all was a huge, and very refreshing, surprise.Willie Mullins blew into Del Mar with Ethical Diamond, his first ever runner at the meeting, and left with the $2m first prize in the Turf, nearly five times as much as he banked when Nick Rockett landed the Grand National in April. And the style of his win was equally memorable. Punters who backed the proven Group One form of Minnie Hauk and Rebel’s Romance might beg to differ, but it gladdened the heart to see an Ebor Handicap winner leave the pair of them standing with a stretch run for the ages.Mullins was, momentarily at least, lost for words after Ethical Diamond and Dylan Browne McMonagle powered across the line
NFL week nine: Bills take down Chiefs, Jaguars edge Raiders in OT thriller – as it happened
(2-6) Las Vegas Raiders 29-30 Jacksonville Jaguars (5-3)(6-2) Los Angeles Rams 34-10 New Orleans Saints (1-8)(6-2) Buffalo Bills 28-31 Kansas City Chiefs (5-4)OK now that the Mad Max dust storm has settled or rather is settling, I think the performance of the night has to be Buffalo’s defense stepping up in the biggest of all spots to keep Patrick Mahomes in check. The all-world QB finished 15/34 for 250 yards, zero touchdowns, one pick and a rating of 57.2. Mahomes led the NFL in passing scores going into this and he didn’t get to add to his tally. Huge!Right, that is me done again for another week
Pitch invading prankster Daniel Jarvis charged after lining up with Kangaroos players at Ashes Test
A pitch invader who lined up alongside Australia’s rugby league players while the national anthem played at the weekend’s Ashes match in Liverpool has been arrested.Daniel Jarvis, a serial prankster, allegedly escaped the attention of security before kick-off in the second Test against England, slipping undetected on to the pitch to link arms with Kangaroos star Cameron Munster as Advance Australia Fair played.Munster noticed the interloper but did not realise it was a prank until he recognised the man known as “Jarvo” to his considerable social media following.“Some guy tried to get in between me and him [Pat Carrigan] and I said, ‘Nah’. Then he asked me again, ‘Can I stand next to you and hold you?’
India beat South Africa by 52 runs to win Women’s Cricket World Cup final – as it happened
Harmanpreet lifts the trophy at last. A shower of gold fireworks shoots into the sky. There’s gold tickertape too, and the voice of Freddie Mercury.“We are the champions,” he sings. And then the worst line in any Queen song: “no time for losers”
Saracens Women enjoy World Cup bounce with record crowd for derby
If fans had been told at the start of the day to predict which Canada international would be the star of the Premiership Women’s Rugby London derby, most would have picked out Sophie de Goede. The versatile world player of the year is in incredible form, after her starring role in Canada’s run to the Rugby World Cup final just over a month ago, but she did not have the chance to live up to those hypothetical expectations as she failed a fitness test a few hours before kick-off.Such is the Canadian presence at Saracens, though, that another Canuck stood out, with the wing Alysha Corrigan at the heart of the north London club winning 47-10 against Harlequins in this fierce rivalry in front of a record 3,733 spectators.Corrigan produced not only two skilful tries but she was also able to beat several defenders throughout the encounter and had defensive prowess which marked her out at a sunny but cold StoneX Stadium. Canadian flair was on display throughout, with Olivia Apps also an electric presence and Laetitia Royer impressing on her debut
Coco Gauff’s serving troubles return in WTA Finals defeat against Pegula
Coco Gauff’s serving woes followed her into the final week of the season, as the American’s title defence at the WTA Finals in Riyadh began with a bruising 6-3, 6-7 (4), 6-2 loss to her compatriot Jessica Pegula in their first match of the group stages.Despite fighting hard and remaining competitive until the end, the third seed simply could not overcome her 17 double faults against an in-form Pegula, the fifth seed, who maintained her composure after getting pulled into a final set by her struggling opponent, and saved her best level for the closing stretch of the match.Pegula’s victory could prove to be an important win in the Stefanie Graf group, with Aryna Sabalenka looming and favoured to advance. Earlier on Sunday, the world No 1 opened her tournament with a confident 6-3, 6-1 win over Jasmine Paolini, the eighth seed. The victory was Sabalenka’s 60th of the season, the first time she has achieved this milestone
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