Cybercriminals are increasingly targeting travellers as digital platforms become central to planning, booking, and managing journeys.
Over the past year, Kaspersky solutions detected nearly
270,000 attack attempts disguised as popular travel-related brands,
highlighting the growing risks associated with online travel services.
To help travellers stay secure while exploring new
destinations, Kaspersky has launched Kaspersky Safe Travel Insights, a handbook
combining travel inspiration with cybersecurity guidance.
The initiative features insights from Kaspersky employees
across more than 20 countries, including Türkiye, South Africa, and Egypt,
sharing local travel recommendations alongside advice on digital threats travellers
may encounter.
Transport brands remain the biggest target
Kaspersky researchers found that transport-related brands
were the primary focus of cybercriminal activity.
Between Q2 2025 and Q1 2026, Kaspersky solutions recorded
262,663 detections linked to major transport brands, including airlines,
ride-sharing services, and travel platforms.
Attacks impersonating Emirates accounted for 61% of all
transport-related detections, while Uber accounted for 37%.
The findings show that cybercriminals are exploiting widely
recognized brands with large customer bases and frequent online payment
activity.
Trojans were the most common threat detected among files and
objects associated with transport brands, accounting for 30.5% of detections,
followed by Trojan-Bankers at 22.5%.
These malicious programmes are designed to steal banking
credentials and payment information, meaning attackers are often targeting travellers’
financial data rather than only their booking details.
Kaspersky researchers also uncovered scams involving fake
compensation claims. In one example, cybercriminals impersonated Irish airline
Ryanair by sending messages claiming victims were eligible for flight
compensation.
Victims were then
directed to provide account details or pay a small processing fee to receive
the supposed refund.
Kaspersky warned that such scams often rely on extreme
urgency, pressuring users to act immediately.
Legitimate airlines
do not require travellers to make instant decisions or pay upfront fees to
process refunds.
Travel platforms face growing cyber risks
While transport brands remain the largest target, travel
booking and accommodation services also face cyber threats.
Between Q2 2025 and Q1 2026, Kaspersky recorded 5,414 attack
attempts involving travel and accommodation brands.
Trojans represented the majority of detected threats in this
category, accounting for 54.6% of cases.
Travel accounts are attractive targets because they often
contain personal information, payment details, booking histories, and
communications with service providers.
One scam identified by Kaspersky involved a fake Booking.com
page designed to collect users’ personal and payment information.
Victims believed they were completing a legitimate
reservation, but no booking confirmation was issued and payments were
redirected to scammers.
“Travel brands sit at a unique intersection of trust,
urgency and payment activity, which makes them extremely attractive to
cybercriminals seeking to appear legitimate. People booking a flight or a ride
are often moving quickly, comparing prices across several tabs, and are primed
to click on anything that looks like a good deal or an account issue. What's
striking in our transport data is that the most-targeted brands span completely
different services — from ride-sharing to full-service airlines — which tells
us that attackers are casting a wide net rather than focusing on one niche,”
said Evgeny Kuskov, Lead Security Researcher at Kaspersky.
Kaspersky advises travellers to book only through official
websites and apps, verify website addresses before entering payment
information, avoid suspicious offers, use strong passwords with multi-factor
authentication, and download apps only from trusted sources.
The company also recommends monitoring bank statements after
bookings, avoiding unverified QR codes, and using security tools such as VPN
protection and AI-powered scam detection features to help identify phishing
websites and fraudulent payment pages.
Through Kaspersky Safe Travel Insights, the company aims to
help travellers discover destinations confidently while remaining aware of
digital threats, including phishing, payment scams, and risks associated with
public Wi-Fi networks. -TradeArabia News Service