Jet2 worker jailed for grudge cyber attack

A FORMER IT worker with Jet2 who had a grudge against the firm has been jailed after his cyber attack shut the airline’s computer network for 12 hours.

Leeds Crown Court heard only quick thinking by one member of staff at the airline prevented Scott Burns’s actions being a “complete disaster” for the company.

Despite that intervention, the company estimated 27-year-old Burns’s attack cost it £165,000 in lost business, the court was told.

Jailing Burns for 10 months, Judge Andrew Stubbs QC heard how the motive was revenge because Burns was unhappy about how Jet2 dealt with a disciplinary matter against him relating to an incident at a

“roadshow in Benidorm” in 2017. No further details of the incident were outlined.

Judge Stubbs told Burns: “This went far beyond being mischievous. This was a revenge attack for a perceived slight.”

The judge said he needed to send a message about the “pernicious and far-reaching impact” of cyber crime and to

“those minded to commit this type of offence”.

Prosecutor Rebecca Austin told the court Burns used logins he had retained to access the system and delete all user accounts, including those with admin privileges, in January 2018.

She said one IT worker managed to create a new, hidden admin account as the attack was happening as and was able to avert a “complete disaster” and rebuild the accounts.

Ms Austin said Burns, of Morley, Leeds, also accessed the email account of Jet2 chief executive Steve Heapy.

The defendant pleaded guilty to eight counts under the Computer Misuse Act.