Target Customers Worried About Their Personal Data Should Read This

[dgstorm]

Even though this isn't really Android related, we felt it was a good bit of info to share. In case you missed it, late last month/year Target was "targeted" by hackers which resulted in a massive security leak which compromised 70 Million consumers (20% of the U.S.), including their credit card information. The attack happened during the holiday shopping season and occurred if you shopped at Target with a credit card between Nov. 27 and Dec. 15. These credit card breaches have already begun filtering on to the black market, and obviously have many folks worried. In fact, new information was released Friday indicating that criminals also stole personal information which included names, phone numbers, email addresses and mailing addresses.

The Associated Press posted a very worthwhile Q&A article detailing Target's data breach and outlining some steps to combat it if you might be one of the affected parties. Here's a quote with part of the article and a source link below to the full piece,

Q: What should I do to protect myself?

A: Consumers who think they may be affected should check their credit card statements carefully for potentially fraudulent charges. Experts say in cases like this when a huge amount of information is stolen, the thieves often sell it on the black market to the highest bidder. As a result, it could be a while before someone tries to use the information for nefarious purposes.

If you see suspicious charges, report the activity to your credit card companies and call Target at 866-852-8680. You can report cases of identity theft to law enforcement or the Federal Trade Commission.

Stasiak says that since it could be a long time before identity theft victims even realize they've been hit, people should take Target up on its offer of free credit monitoring. Those services, for instance, inform consumers if someone takes out a loan in their name.

He also advises potential victims to change email passwords and to make sure that the same passwords aren't being used for other accounts like Facebook. And while the company has not said that its website was compromised in the attack, he says shoppers also should change their passwords related to those, since it's apparent that Target doesn't yet have a full grasp of the damage.

Consumers can get more information about identity theft on the FTC's website at Identity Theft | Consumer Information , or by calling the FTC, at 877- IDTHEFT (438-4338).

We know there is the potential for some of our members to have been affected by this, so we wanted to share this info. Here's the AP article: Plattsburgh Press-Republican -AP News

 

[SquireSCA]

I think that hackers like this, need to be dealt with for once and for all. When it happens, and you catch them, mandatory life in prison. When you wreak havoc on so many people's lives, you deserve to go to jail for life, or just die. Make the pain of doing this so painful that people actually think twice about it. People glorify hacking, and it needs to stop. If you are that smart, then you could go get a real job rather than hide in the shadows and prey on other people.

Enough already, just put a bullet in their head when they catch them and call it a day.

 

[johnomaz]

I think that hackers like this, need to be dealt with for once and for all. When it happens, and you catch them, mandatory life in prison. When you wreak havoc on so many people's lives, you deserve to go to jail for life, or just die. Make the pain of doing this so painful that people actually think twice about it. People glorify hacking, and it needs to stop. If you are that smart, then you could go get a real job rather than hide in the shadows and prey on other people.

Enough already, just put a bullet in their head when they catch them and call it a day.

I disagree. Life in prison for this, no. But they should be restricted from all forms of technology for life. Computers, cell phones, television, etc. Make them feel like they are living in a preindustrial era. I think that would be a nightmarish hell for those kind of people. Parole for life and that should do it. A small bit of jail time should be there as well, maybe 2-5 years depending on how bad it was.


As for what to do, my bank issued new debit/credit cards to all their customers who shopped at Target during that time. I got one, my wife didn't because only my card was used in that time. Thankfully I didn't buy anything online so only my debit card was potentially affected.

 

[SquireSCA]

Nothing lower than thieves. Put a bullet in their head and call it a day. Useless dregs of society, these types.