Tuesday, August 05, 2008

Charges following TJX breach investigation

The New York Times is reporting that 11 people have been charged in connection with the massive data breach that dominated the headlines for months after January 2007:

11 Charged in Theft of 40 Million Card Numbers - NYTimes.com

...The charges focus on three people from the United States, three from the Ukraine, two from China, one from Estonia and one from Belarus.

The authorities said that the scheme was spearheaded by a Miami man named Albert Gonzalez, who hacked into the computer systems of retailers including TJX, BJ’s Wholesale Club, OfficeMax, Boston Market, Barnes & Noble, Sports Authority, Forever 21 and DSW Inc. The numbers were then stored on computer servers in the United States and Eastern Europe.

They then sold the information to people in the United States and Europe, who used it to withdraw tens of thousands of dollars at a time from automated teller machines, the authorities said....

For the sordid history, see these related posts.

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