FULL-SCALE PROBE LAUNCHED AFTER KLIA CYBERSECURITY THREAT, OPERATIONS UNAFFECTED  MAHB, NACSA

SEPANG, March 25 — A full-scale investigation was swiftly initiated following the detection of a cybersecurity threat on Sunday (March 23), which impacted certain computer systems at Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA).

In a joint statement today, Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad (MAHB) managing director Datuk Mohd Izani Ghani said the National Cyber Security Agency (NACSA) and the Civil Aviation Authority Malaysia (CAAM) were immediately notified to assess the nature and extent of the incident.

“Malaysia Airports assures all stakeholders that maintaining airport operations remains our focus. We are working with our partners to ensure flight operations and passenger processing continue to operate normally.

“Ensuring the safety, security, and integrity of airport systems remains the highest priority at this time. Technical and operational teams are actively monitoring the situation and implementing necessary measures to safeguard infrastructure and ensure uninterrupted passenger experience,” he said.

Meanwhile, NACSA chief executive Dr Megat Zulhairy Megat Tajuddin said the agency has been closely following the developments since receiving Malaysia Airports’ report on March 23.

“We understand that operations at KLIA are not impacted. We will continue to monitor the situation and support MAHB,” he said.

Earlier Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim revealed that MAHB’s digital system was recently attacked by hackers demanding a ransom of USD10 million.

However, Anwar stressed that the government did not give in to the cybercriminals’ demands and stressed the need to bolster the country’s systems by allocating additional funding to various agencies, including the Royal Malaysia Police and Bank Negara Malaysia.