United Airlines Blocks AI Agents From Booking Flights, Citing Cybersecurity Risks
United Airlines said it will restrict access to AI agents seeking to book flights and manage reservations on users’ behalf, citing a risk to cybersecurity and undermining federal regulations.
The airline warned that "sharing account credentials with personal, third-party, AI assistants can expose sensitive information, and actions taken by these tools may result in unintended purchases, account changes, or use of MileagePlus miles."
United also cited federal aviation rules requiring that a human completes flight check-ins to acknowledge that their bags do not contain banned substances.
"As a result, United is taking steps to restrict access — directly within our digital platforms and indirectly via travel agencies and aggregators — to prohibit use by unauthorized, third-party personal AI agents or assistants," the airline said in a statement. "This work includes updates to our booking, ticketing and distribution policies."
The restriction applies across United’s digital platforms and through partner travel agencies and aggregators. It covers purchasing tickets, managing reservations, applying loyalty points, and handling account changes.
United has indicated it will honor reservations that an AI agent completed on a customer’s behalf before the policy took effect.
The airline’s move follows a warning from banks, including Bank of America, which last week urged customers not to share their passwords with their AI assistants.
