Man arrested in UK over alleged cyberattack that affected European airports

A man in his 40s has been arrested in southern England over an alleged cyberattack that caused disruption at several European airports in recent days, including at London Heathrow, law enforcement officials said Wednesday.

The UK's National Crime Agency said the suspect was held in West Sussex on Tuesday on suspicion of offenses involving the misuse of computers.

The man has been released on conditional bail.

Although this arrest is a positive step, the investigation into this incident is in its early stages and remains ongoing," said Paul Foster, head of the NCA's national cyber crime unit. Cybercrime is a persistent global threat that continues to cause significant disruption to the UK"  Starting late Friday, airports in Berlin, Brussels and London were hit by disruptions to electronic systems that snarled up check-in and sent airline staffers trying options like handwriting boarding passes or using backup laptops. Many other European airports were unaffected.

The cyberattack affected software of Collins Aerospace, whose systems help passengers check in, print boarding passes and bag tags, and dispatch their luggage. The US-based company on Saturday cited a cyber-related disruption to its software at "select airports in Europe.

It was not immediately clear who might be behind the cyberattack, but experts said it could turn out to be hackers, criminal organizations or state actors.