Rail company NMBS reported problems with their website, app and information screens in the stations yesterday. Today it emerged the company had been the target of a DDOS cyber attack.
Belgium’s state-owned rail company now says its website is up and running once again. The company claims that it was the target of a massive cyber attack last night. The attack triggered a decision to close down the website. Station information screens and the rail company app also experienced problems, but NMBS says these difficulties were not linked to the attack.
The DDOS attack was launched at 2AM. Such attacks mean that a website receives a large number of requests it can no longer cope with and collapses. The rail company then decided to close down the website as a precaution.
That decision meant passengers were unable to obtain journey information or purchase tickets via the website all morning. All services are now once again up and running. The cause of problems with the app and information screens is unclear. The rail company is filing a complaint with the judicial authorities and apologises to passengers.