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40M could be impacted by Target data breach
It couldn’t have come at a worse time. Target Corp. confirmed Thursday that there was unauthorized access to the credit and debit card data of shoppers who made purchases in its U.S. stores over the past month.
Minneapolis--It couldn’t have come at a worse time. Target Corp.
confirmed Thursday that there was unauthorized access to the credit and
debit card data of shoppers who made purchases in its
U.S. stores over the past month.
The Minneapolis-based retailer
said the breach could affect shoppers who used a credit or debit card
for purchases in its stores across the country between Nov. 27 and Dec.
15, a prime period for shopping that includes Black Friday.
Target estimates that nearly 40 million consumers could be involved.
The
information involved in the incident includes customer name, credit or
debit card number, expiration date and the CVV, the three-digit security
code on the back of the card.
Though Target gave no information in the statement issued Thursday about how the data was obtained, The Wall Street Journal reported
that the theft may have involved tampering with the machines that
shoppers use to swipe their cards when making a purchase, gaining access
to the data through the magnetic strip on the back.
Target did not respond to a request for additional information.
The
company said in the statment that it alerted
authorities and financial institutions immediately after it was made
aware of the breach, and that it has resolved the issue. Target also
said that it’s working with a third-party forensics firm to conduct an
investigation into the issue.
"Any time an organization finds
itself a victim of a data breach, it puts its brand and reputation at
risk because it can significantly damage consumer trust,” says Daren
Orzechowski, a New York-based partner at law firm White & Case who
focuses on information technology matters. “For retailers, something
like this is terrible, but they can better navigate the situation if
they have a plan and protocol in place to address a breach if and when
it happens. The last thing a business wants to do is to scramble to
first come up with a remedy after the breach has occurred.”
Additional information about the unauthorized access is available on Target’s website.
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