India aviation market in chaos amid bomb hoaxes

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20241028 Air India

Indian airlines, including national flag carrier Air India, have been receiving hundreds of bomb threats ahead of the country’s busiest travel season. (Photo by Takaki Kashiwabara)

NEETA LAL,

NEW DELHI — A social media war has erupted between the Indian government and Elon Musk’s X, which has become the favored forum for cyber hoaxsters to deliver bomb threats to airlines in the leadup to the country’s busiest travel season.

Over 14 days by Sunday, more than 350 flights were affected by bomb hoaxes as Indians began anticipating Diwali, a major Hindu festival that kicks off an annual spending surge.

Diwali is part of a holiday season starting this week and running through early next month.

Government officials and industry representatives say they want more cooperation from X to uncover exactly who is behind the anonymous accounts carrying out the threats, be they foreign agents or teenage pranksters.

On Thursday alone, at least 85 bomb threats were reported by airlines across the country, with national flag carrier Air India receiving 18 and IndiGo 20. On Oct. 22, 50 such threats were reported by domestic and international carriers, according to airline officials, and threats continued through Sunday.

The Indian Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology has slammed X, with Joint Secretary Sanket S Bhondve saying the platform is accountable for “abetting crime.”

Chairing a virtual meeting on Tuesday with representatives of airlines and social media platforms such as X and Meta, Bhondve questioned X representatives on the steps being taken to stop the alarming rumors from spreading, a ministry official who was part of the meeting, told Nikkei Asia.

“All the hoax alerts came from X accounts that had been created recently with the purpose of making those threats,” the ministry official said. “Scammers are posting threats from the anonymity of virtual private networks or VPNs. We’ve told X officials to promptly share all information related to the threats with the government and law enforcement agencies to bring perpetrators to book.”

The nonstop threats, triggering disruptions and delays, have created a nightmare for airlines and passengers alike. Irate passengers of affected flights say they have spent hours stranded at airports or in remote locations as their planes were diverted, forced to make emergency landings or subjected to prolonged security searches.

“I was on an IndiGo flight from Delhi to Jeddah (in Saudi Arabia) on Oct. 21 and suddenly it was announced that the flight will be delayed due to ‘an unexpected development,'” said Namita Arora, 56. “After a five-hour wait, there was another announcement saying there will be more delay. Finally, after a 10-hour delay the flight took off but by [the time I reached my destination] I’d already missed my sister-in-law’s engagement ceremony.”

Civil Aviation Minister Kinjarapu Rammohan Naidu has announced plans for new legislative measures to address bomb threats, including placing offenders on a no-fly list. Addressing a press conference on Oct. 21, Naidu said he will push for legislative amendments. “We’re trying to speed up the process as much as possible in such cases to avoid trouble to passengers,” Naidu said.

According to Prashant Mali, a Mumbai-based advocate and an expert in international cybersecurity, artificial intelligence and data protection, laws exist to address crimes involving criminal intimidation including threats aimed at instilling fear amounting to public mischief. “But clearly, scammers have gotten ahead of us,” he said, “and existing laws aren’t enough to address the menace. It’s time to add additional guardrails in the system.”

The threats are giving rise to serious concerns about aviation safety in one of the world’s fastest-growing markets for commercial flights. According to government data, the number of domestic passengers in India is projected to double to 300 million by 2030 compared to 2023. S&P Global noted in a recent report that the sector will need over $170 billion in investment by 2030 to fund aircraft orders and an increase in airport capacity in response to the surge.

Rajiv Mehra, president of the Indian Association of Tour Operators, an industry group based in New Delhi, said the unprecedented scale of the threats has not only damaged India’s image abroad but also roiled the aviation sector financially.

Indian media has reported an estimate that diverting a Boing 777 after a bomb threat could cost an airline more than 30 million rupees ($356,800) for fuel wastage, unexpected landing fees, hotel rooms for passengers and crews, compensation for missed connections and other costs.

“The threats have highlighted a disturbing cybercrime trend jeopardizing the safety of passengers and causing losses worth millions for airline companies,” Mehra said.

Mehra says he suspects a “conspiracy” of foreign entities “jealous of India’s success” is behind the hoaxes and is out to damage the country’s economy and its reputation.

“It is a well-choreographed event involving a foreign hand,” Mehra said, admitting he has no evidence. “X officials should cooperate with the Indian government and urgently share all information of handles from where threats emanated.”

Despite turning out to be hoaxes, the threats have spread considerable panic as they come amid heightened tensions between India and Canada over the possible presence of Sikh terrorists in India.

The chaos worsened on Oct. 21 when Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, a Khalistani terrorist who has called for the formation of an independent Sikh state in India, issued a series of threats to Air India flights scheduled to take off from Nov. 1 to Nov. 19.

The situation is also disquieting when considering India’s long history of bombings and hijackings from the 1970s to the 1990s, experts say.

On Oct. 17, Mumbai Police arrested a minor for allegedly posting online bomb threats targeting three flights. There’s no proof that the arrestee was the one behind the threats, but even if he was, legal experts say current aviation rules lack any provisions to penalize minors.

Passengers meanwhile are questioning why there isn’t a system in place to prevent or filter serious cyber threats from hoaxes. They are baffled as to why bad actors get to hold India’s entire aviation sector for ransom. “The government is saying perpetrators will be put on a no-fly list and could face jail time,” said Arora, the passenger who missed her sister-in-law’s engagement ceremony. “But these are punitive measures. What about preventive ones to avoid a repeat?”

source : asia.nikkei

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