The company specializing in Voyageurs du monde tourism is in turmoil. Several thousand copies of passports that she kept – 10,000, according to cybercriminals, 8,000, according to cybersecurity expert Julien Metayer – have just leaked on the Lockbit gang site.
The cybercriminals released several sample copies of IDs, as well as internal documents, and uploaded two archives of about 17 gigabytes of information believed to have been stolen from the company, which specializes in travel on measurement and adventure travel.
Refusal to pay the ransom
Voyageurs du monde, which had a turnover of 497 million euros in 2022, confirmed the data leak, which follows, it underlines, its refusal to pay the ransom demanded by cybercriminals. The company specifies that the copies of stolen passports come from the “Community travel” activity, ie 2% of its customers.
The collection of this kind of document allows, adds the company, to “facilitate the organization” of the trip, for example for the reservation of the plane ticket or the visa application. “The customers concerned will be informed directly knowing that the biometric data which remains confidential, ensures their security”, she affirms.
Intrusion in mid-May
However, such documents can allow cybercriminals to attempt various scams related to identity theft, or even give credibility to phishing attempts. To avoid this kind of mishap, the Cybermalveillance platform recommends marking copies of identity documents sent to third parties with the name of the recipient and the date, a way to prevent these documents from being reused for fraudulent purposes.
Voyageurs du monde had reported in mid-May that it had been the victim of a computer intrusion. The company then assured that it had circumscribed the attack and reinforced its security. The company then believed that there was no reason to suspect the theft of customer data.