Staples: The Latest Major Retailer Hacked

2014 has not been a good year for retailers. Every month it seems, another store is reporting that they’ve been hacked and that a ton of their customer’s personal information could have been leaked out to hackers. Earlier this year it was Target reporting that their POS system had been compromised, and now, office supply store Staples is reporting they’ve also been the victim of hacking. Of their 1400 stores in the United States, they’ve reported that 115 of them have been affected by the hack. As a result, anyone who made a credit-card purchase between the months of July through September could potentially be at risk for fraudulent activity on their cards. In total, Staples reports that approximately 1.16 million cards could have been affected by this breach. Apart from the credit card numbers, thieves could also have access to customer’s names, expiration dates, as well as the 3-digit verification codes located to the right of the signature strip on the back of the card.

If you used a credit card at a Staples store between the dates listed above and are worried about your personal information, Staples has taken steps to provide you with free credit monitoring and identity theft protection services, in much the same way Target did in the past.

Hacking is the popular topic of the week – albeit in Hollywood or in retail stores – hopefully this trend won’t continue into the new year, but I’m afraid it will.

What do you think? Have you been affected by the Staples hack? Do you think they’re doing enough in the aftermath? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below!

[Image via Fox 59]

SOURCE: CNET