Customers who recently purchased tickets online for Fota Wildlife Park in Cork have been asked to block their debit or credit cards following a cyberattack.
Those who made a transaction on Fota’s website between May 12 and August 27 were warned that their financial information could be at risk.
An email sent to customers “strongly advised” them to take action.
They were asked to block debit or credit cards and review transactions since May 12 to detect suspicious activity.
Account holders on the Fota website have been told that their username, password and email address linked to the account may also be at risk and they have been advised to change their password if it is used for other accounts.
“When we became aware of this activity, we immediately initiated steps to investigate and determine what information was being accessed on our website in order to take containment measures,” the email said.
“One of the measures we have taken is to remove all access to user accounts on the website.”
Fota said the company had engaged external cybersecurity forensic experts to investigate the incident, which was reported to the Data Protection Commission, adding that the company would fully cooperate with the investigation.
“We understand that this may be of great concern to you. We want to assure you that we take our responsibility to protect your personal and financial information seriously and are treating this matter as a top priority,” customers were told.
In a statement, Fota Wildlife Park said it “can confirm that it has recently detected illegal cyber activity impacting its website.”
“The organization’s incident response plan was immediately activated, an internal investigation was initiated, and appropriate measures were taken to secure the organization’s website.
“The incident has been reported to the relevant authorities and Fota Wildlife Park is working with those authorities. Fota Wildlife Park is in the process of contacting any customers who may have been affected.
“In the meantime, daily operations at Fota Wildlife Park continue as usual.”
