Rupert Goodwins' Diary -- Guaranteed MS Free!

Friday 26/10/01

Sputtering indignation on the Pprune bulletin board for pilots. RyanAir has stopped all recruitment of flight deck crew except for via the Web site -- and to lodge your CV for consideration will cost £50, thank you very much. Which many people see as the last word in cynical manipulation of a buyer's market: not that RyanAir cares.

But how deeply RyanAir doesn't care is underscored by the way the site's set up. You've got to submit your personal details, CV and credit card number over an unencrypted, insecure link. The Web site says so -- which is roughly the equivalent of sticking a sign in the window saying "Rich people's credit cards here -- just hack me and grab some."

RyanAir says "So what?", and that it'll get around to making the link secure soon. And if you don't like it, don't apply.

I used to like RyanAir. Sure, bossman Michael O'Leary is, as the Irish say, a cute hoor, who cuts some very sharp deals, but the prices are good (if you get the timing right). But the feeling is he's stepped over the limit now, and when things go wrong for Ryan there'll be no shortage of people lining up to crumble soil into the grave.

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