Cybersecurity experts say it is going to become harder for us to avoid becoming victims of online attacks and phishing scams. That warning follows hackers releasing the details of more than 5 million Qantas customers on the dark web over the weekend.More InformationFeatured:Catherine King, Federal Infrastructure MinisterProfessor Nigel Phair, Monash UniversityAaron Bugal, SophosCreditsAdam Langenberg, ReporterImage DetailsCyber criminals released personal information from Qantas frequent flyers onto the dark web after demands for a ransom were not met.(AAP: Paul Miller)Program:More fromAMTranscriptSabra Lane:Cyber security experts say it's going to become harder for us to avoid becoming victims of online attacks and phishing scams. That warning follows hackers releasing the details of more than 5 million Qantas customers on the dark web over the weekend. Security specialists say we all need to be more careful as hackers use information like that and artificial intelligence to access our bank accounts and impersonate us online. Adam Langenberg reports.Adam Langenberg :After ransom demands weren't met, hackers have now released the details of more than five and a half million Qantas customers on the dark web. Those affected by the leak include some frequent flying politicians, like Federal Infrastructure Minister Catherine King.Catherine King:My data has been subject to that as well as a Qantas user as well.Adam Langenberg :Qantas says no credit card details were caught up in the hack and for most customers the hackers just got their name, email address and frequent flyer details, but for some their date of birth, address, phone number and gender were also released.Nigel Phair :Cyber criminals will use this information, they'll match it to information from other data breaches to form a picture of an individual.Adam Langenberg :That's Monash University cyber security professor Nigel Phair.Nigel Phair :It's really difficult for people to be alert and to pick up on these phishing attacks because they're getting much more sophisticated the more information that criminals have about us.Adam Langenberg :Aaron Bugal from cyber security firm Sophos says people need to be mindful when they get an email or a text from a company, especially when they're not expecting it.Aaron Bugal :Digest them, take a moment, take a breath and then maybe perhaps validate them using a trusted source, so going off to your bank or actually finding legitimate contact details of your airline carrier and then contacting them to ask them what's up.Adam Langenberg :The hackers behind the data breach are a collective called Scattered Lapsus Hunters. They stole the data of 40 companies, including Qantas, after targeting customers of cloud technology giant Salesforce in July. On Saturday, they published the Qantas data after a ransom wasn't paid and in a post on their Telegram channel, threatened to relentlessly target Australia unless the country started paying ransoms.Nigel Phair :I don't think you should pay ransom under just about any circumstance.Adam Langenberg :That's Professor Nigel Phair again.Nigel Phair :You're dealing with cyber criminals here just because they say that if you pay, they won't release the data has not held up to be true in the past. I think Qantas have done the right thing by not paying.Adam Langenberg :Aaron Bugal agrees, but says complying with the hackers demands can sometimes be the only way out for businesses in the middle of a crisis.Nigel Phair :If that data is the only copy of the data that the hackers now have that will enable that business to operate, it leaves that organisation in a very tricky position on whether or not they do or don't pay.Adam Langenberg :In a statement, Attorney General Michelle Rowland said the government has already taken steps to improve the nation's privacy laws, including giving the Australian Information Commission more powers and increasing the penalties for companies that fail to take adequate care of customer data. The Australian Information Commission wouldn't say whether Qantas would be fined over the breach, but Professor Phair says there needs to be consequences.Nigel Phair :We need a combination of carrot and stick. We need to encourage organisations to have good, safe and secure practices. But for when there are issues like this, they need the pull the stick out because without that you're not going to get a lot of organisations treating their information security obligations seriously enough.Adam Langenberg :Salesforce says there is no indication its platform has been compromised.Sabra Lane:Adam Langenberg there.Appears InIsrael prepares to welcome home hostagesDuration: 20 minutes 14 seconds20m6itemsIn this episode1of6Trump flies to Israel as hostages set for releaseDuration: 3 minutes 4 seconds3m4s2of6Trump family using crypto to make billionsDuration: 2 minutes 56 seconds2m56s3of6PlayingAI only going to make cyberattacks more dangerousDuration: 3 minutes 33 seconds3m33s4of6Uni grilled over consultant costsDuration: 2 minutes 41 seconds2m41s5of6Australia's digital divideDuration: 3 minutes 36 seconds3m36s6of6Remote region struggling with rundown roadsDuration: 3 minutes 21 seconds3m21s