|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Friday June 04, 05:25
|
|
Sovereign Card Reissuing Linked To BJ’s Breach
|
|
Sovereign Bancorp’s move to reissue 88,000 debit cards, some 700 of which were fraudulently used, results from the security breach at BJ’s Wholesale Clubs in March, according to the Boston Herald. To date, Sovereign has spent about USD 500,000 on reissuing Visa debit cards, but was unable to give a dollar figure for the frauds, which affected 400 New Englanders. Other regional banks were hit, with Eastern Bank investigating USD 20,000 in possible fraud after reissuing 12,000 MasterCard debit cards, and Middlesex Savings Bank reissuing 6,400 Visa debit cards.
Last month, the US Secret Service arrested six individuals in Europe, in connection with the breach at BJ’s after some of the stolen card numbers were traded online via an IRC (Internet Relay Chat) channel. Two more individuals have been arrested in the US, but not before the Secret Service advised retailers and banks to improve the security of customers’ data. Banks advised cardholders asking if their cards had been compromised to monitor statements for small, unauthorized payments, as a sign that the hackers were testing the validity of the stolen cards.
Of 500 US firms responding to a recent FBI survey on cyber security, 90 per cent had had an online security breach, while 80 per cent had incurred a financial loss. The fraud resulting from BJ’s breach is the largest yet case the New England Electronic Task Force has dealt with. However, the Boston Herald quotes former Defense Intelligence Agency officer, Jim Melnick, as saying that most US citizens “would be surprised to know that thousands of credit card numbers are sold online every day and very little is done to stop it”, given the lack of available resources.
(eWeek)
|
|
All billing news
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 KEYWORD SEARCH |
|
|
|
|
|
SUBSCRIPTION |
|
|
|
|
|