Bangladesh on high cyber alert: CAAB issues emergency directive to all airports
In a move signalling urgent concern over escalating global cyber threats, the Bangladesh Civil Aviation Authority (CAAB) has issued a nationwide security alert to all international and domestic airports, ordering immediate reinforcement of cyber defences following a wave of sophisticated attacks on major European aviation hubs.
The directive, confirmed by CAAB officials to Jago News on Thursday, comes in direct response to recent cyber intrusions at London’s Heathrow, Brussels Airport, and Berlin Brandenburg Airport, which disrupted flight operations, passenger data systems, and ground handling services.
Fearing a potential spillover or copycat strikes, CAAB has dispatched a strict 10-point cybersecurity mandate to every airport head and senior aviation official across the country. The confidential instruction letter, signed by Air Commodore Abu Sayeed Mehboob Khan, Member (Planning and Operations) of CAAB, warns: “Cyber-attacks on global airports are no longer isolated incidents—they are a clear and present danger to national aviation security.”
Under the new protocol, all civil aviation personnel must now comply with stringent digital safeguards, including:
Mandatory use of strong, complex passwords changed regularly
Strict prohibition on opening suspicious emails or clicking unknown links
Immediate updating of all operating systems, software, and antivirus programs
Zero tolerance for pirated software on any official system
Ban on installing personal applications on government-issued devices
Compulsory activation of multi-factor authentication (MFA) across all critical platforms
Perhaps most critically, the order establishes a rapid-response reporting chain: any suspected cyber anomaly—no matter how minor—must be escalated immediately to three key entities:
The CAAB CERT (Computer Emergency Response Team)
The CAAB IT Department
The National Cyber Incident Response Team under the Ministry of Information and Communications
Authorities urge all airport staff to treat cybersecurity not as an IT issue, but as a core component of national aviation safety. As one CAAB official put it: “In today’s world, a firewall is as vital as a runway.”