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Shares in Chinese online travel agent Ctrip plunge after hack attack stops service

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Ctrip, China's largest online travel agent, with a more than 45 per cent market share, was taken offline by hackers on Thursday. Photo: Xinhua
He Huifengin Guangdong

The website of Ctrip, China's biggest online travel agent, was unresponsive for several hours today after it was hacked by unknown individuals.

The company's website and app were taken offline by an attack which began around 11am on Thursday, Ctrip spokesman Shi Kaifeng told the South China Morning Post.

But all data, including customer personal information and credit card information, was safe, he said.

Shi said the servers are still undergoing repair, and would not comment on when the company thought they would be back online.

A message on Ctrip's website directed users to eLong, another leading Chinese online travel agent.

Ctrip shares fell by almost 20 per cent in pre-opening trading on the US-based Nasdaq exchange, according to Wang Chao, a Hong Kong based analyst for Nomura.

"We can already see a very negative response from the market to the incident," he said, adding that it was too early to estimate just how much money the hack may have cost Ctrip.

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