1,500 Customers Should Check Their Statements ASAP

Representatives with Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air say they're notifying about 1,500 customers of payment card misuse by a former call center employee. Affected customers who provided their addresses to the company were sent letters via first-class mail Wednesday. For the remainder, a notice with the details is being posted on the company's Web site.

"The former employee misused the payment card information provided by some customers to pay for reservation changes," states an Alaska Air Group release. "Rather than process the payment on behalf of Alaska or Horizon, this individual processed the change requested but diverted the payment to a personal account. The diversions occurred between August 2006 and June 2008.

"Customers are not being held responsible for any repayment," the airline added. "Alaska and Horizon take their obligation to safeguard customers' personal information very seriously. The company notified law enforcement authorities and is cooperating with their investigation."

Affected customers are encouraged to review their relevant payment card statements to ensure there have not been any unauthorized transactions. They may also contact their payment card issuer or bank, order a free credit report or take other actions as specified in a reference guide available on Alaska's Web site.

FMI: www.alaskaair.com