The US Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is looking into a potential privacy breach involving a customer service email account for an American Airlines customer service app.
The email account used to provide customer service was accessed by hackers after an employee of the company received an unauthorized email.
American Airlines says that employees are currently investigating the matter and will notify customers if the breach is detected.
“This email account was used by an American employee who was unable to complete a purchase or answer a customer question,” American Airlines wrote in a statement to Business Insider.
“While the customer service employee was unable or unwilling to respond to any questions, they did respond to an email request, and the email address associated with the account was subsequently compromised.
We are in the process of contacting the American employee and are working with law enforcement authorities to obtain the information necessary to fully understand what occurred.”
American Airlines has been in the news in recent weeks over its privacy policies, which are widely criticized as insufficient.
American Airlines is one of the largest US airlines, with over 60 million passengers a year.
The airline has struggled with the issue of customer service over the years, with several customer service executives losing their jobs over the past year.