Target data breach still occupying consumers, financial institutions

Source: Erie Times-News, Pa.迷利倉Jan. 23--Checking your list of credit card charges twice before paying your latest bill isn't a bad idea in the wake of the massive Target data breach that occurred shortly before Christmas.Some shoppers also are opting to replace credit and debit cards they used at Target stores, whether or not fraudulent charges have shown up.While consumers scan their statements for signs they've been victims of the scammers, financial institutions are working to refund unauthorized charges, send out replacement cards and help people protect themselves against similar threats in the future."Unfortunately, this happens throughout the year," Fred Tonty, chief financial officer at Erie Federal Credit Union, said. "Some are very small. This Target one was big."Target announced that up to 70 million customers who used their credit cards or debit cards at Target stores between Nov. 27 and Dec. 15 may have been affected. The stolen data includes credit card and debit card numbers, card expiration dates, security codes on cards, and customers' names, addresses, e-mail addresses and telephone numbers.Because the thieves obtained so much information, Erie Federal Credit Union decided to replace the cards of people who shopped at the stores during that period, Tonty said.So far, that's about 1,600 cards, he said.Replacing them has cost about $5 each, plus overtime for employees performing the related work, Tonty said."It's a very big deal," he said.Credit unions and banks also stand to lose money on charges made by the crooks.Under federal law, card holders are only liable for up to $50 of unauthorized charges made by a thief, according to the Pennsylvania Attorney General's Office. But many don't end up paying even that.Target says customers will have zero liability for fraudulent charges resulting from the breach.Pittsburgh-based PNC Financial Services Group has been refunding customer accounts immediately in most cases, spokeswoman Marcey Zwiebel said."They are not responsible for unauthorized charges on their accounts," she said.She declined to say how many PNC customers were affected by the Target incident or how many cards had been replaced.PNC was suggesting to its customers that they didn't need to get new cards unless they found fraudulent activity on their accounts, Zwiebel said.She said PNC sent an e-mail to customers who had used their cards at Target during the affected period.The credit union s迷你倉nt a letter to Target customers telling them they'd be getting new cards, Tonty said.He said fraudulent charges were made on some of the old cards."These transactions were showing up on members' cards," he said.Tonty said the credit union refunds money for fraudulent charges to customers and can try to get it from a merchant but usually ends up footing most of the bill. If a lawsuit were to follow, he said, the credit union might get back 10 or 15 cents on each dollar it refunded, he said.Tonty said it would be a lie to say that something like the Target breach can't happen again because the people behind such attacks are "pretty darn good at what they do."But Zwiebel said these incidents shouldn't cause shoppers to switch to cash."We don't want customers to be afraid to use their cards," she said.But they want consumers to know what to do when a problem occurs and how to protect themselves.The "Security Assurance" section of PNC.com has information on preventing, detecting and resolving fraud. The "PNC Update Center" there has information specific to the Target situation.That site and most others, along with financial institution officials, said one of the best things consumers can do is monitor their accounts. Card holders should immediately report any suspicious transactions.State Attorney General Kathleen Kane warned consumers about becoming a double victim by falling prey to crooks trying to cash in on the Target trouble."A number of scammers have taken advantage of Target customers' misfortune and have set up websites and are sending e-mails with Target's logos in an attempt to further victimize consumers," Kane said in a statement.Tonty said people shouldn't respond to e-mails, texts or calls asking for financial data or personal information, which could include Social Security numbers, account numbers and passwords.If someone gets such an inquiry, he suggested calling the financial institution to verify the request.Other advice includes:- Change your passwords and don't select simple ones like "1234."- Don't disclose your PIN to anyone.- Consider signing up for free credit monitoring,- Get a free credit report annually from .annualcreditreport.com.DANA MASSING can be reached at 870-1729 or by e-mail. Follow her on Twitter at twitter.com/ETNmassing.Copyright: ___ (c)2014 the Erie Times-News (Erie, Pa.) Visit the Erie Times-News (Erie, Pa.) at .GoErie.com Distributed by MCT Information Services自存倉