Just In Time For Christmas, Santa Steals Your Credit Card Information Via Target

Hackers Grab 40 Million Accounts From Target StoresOkay, so it’s not Santa. Santa didn’t do anything. Hackers that hit the Target website did though, so if you’ve shopped there during the holiday season you should keep a close eye on your credit card statements.

Target just confirmed a security breach and reports that 40 million credit and debit cards may have been compromised. From Time:

If you shopped at a U.S. Target store between November 27 and December 15, you should assume you’re at risk and keep a close watch on your account statements. It’s not clear whether every Target store was affected, but at least one card issuer says it’s seeing signs of fraud all over the United States,according to Krebs on Security. You’re not in any danger if you shopped at Target’s website, or one of the company’s Canada stores.

 

Great. Of course I’ve shopped at a Target store, are you kidding me? I doubt I know even a single person who hasn’t. Scratch that. My brother who’s been serving in Afghanistan probably hasn’t. But that’s it. Every single other person I know has. I’m sure of it. This is what I get for actually leaving the house and doing some of my shopping in person instead of on Amazon.com.

Target says the  hackers “gained access to customer names, credit card or debit card numbers, card expiration dates and CVV security codes.” That’s it. No big whoop. Just every piece of information you need to make a purchase. As if the holiday season hasn’t already strapped us all enough – now we have to worry about someone dipping into the shallow pool of finances left.

So how can you protect yourself if you’ve shopped there? You can’t. Too late. The only guaranteed way to protect yourself is by canceling your card and getting a new one. If that seems like too much of a hassle, Target suggests you keep a close eye on your statements and report anything fraudulent as soon as possible.

(photo: Getty Images)

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