Target: Justice Dept. investigates its data breach

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NEW YORK (AP) — Target Corp. said Monday that theDepartment of Justice is investigating the credit
and debit cardsecurity breach at the retailer.The investigation comes afterTarget revealed last week that
data connected to about 40 million creditand debit card accounts were stolen between Nov. 27 and Dec.
15.Security experts say it’s the second-largest theft of card accounts inU.S. history, surpassed only by a
scam that began in 2005 involvingretailer TJX Cos. That affected at least 45.7 million card
users.TheDepartment of Justice declined to comment on whether it’s investigatingthe breach at Target, the
nation’s second-largest discounter. ButTarget said that it’s cooperating with the DOJ’s probe.The newscame
as Target also said that it is working with the U.S. Secret Servicein the retailer’s own investigation and
that its general counsel held aconference call on Monday with state attorneys general to bring them upto
date on the breach."Target remains committed to sharinginformation about the recent data breach with
all who are impacted,"Molly Snyder, a Target spokeswoman, said in a statement.Targethas been trying to
deal with fallout from the breach during what istypically the busiest shopping season of the year. By Monday
evening,more than a dozen Target customers had filed federal lawsuits around thecountry, with some accusing
Target of negligence in failing to protectcustomer data.Target has said that it told authorities
andfinancial institutions once it became aware of the breach on Dec. 15.The company issued an apology to
customers and doubled the number ofworkers taking calls from customers around the clock. It also offered
10percent off to customers who wanted to shop in its stores on Saturdayand Sunday and free credit-monitoring
services to those who are affectedby the issue.But there are early signs that some shoppers arescared off by
the breach. Scotty Haywood, who lives in Smiths Station,Ala., said he plans to stop shopping at the store.
He said his debitcard number had been stolen after he used it at Target the day afterThanksgiving.He said
the card was denied when his wife tried touse it Thursday at a grocery store. He said the couple knew
somethingwas wrong because they had $2,200 in the account."The possiblesavings of a few dollars (by
going to Target) are nothing compared tothe money that has been stolen from us," he
said.Overall,Customer Growth Partners LLC, a retail consultancy, estimates that thenumber of transactions at
Target fell 3 percent to 4 percent onSaturday, compared with a year ago. The Saturday before Christmas
isusually one of the top busiest days of the season."Before thisincident, Target had a chance of at
least a decent Christmas. Now, itwill be mediocre at best," said Craig Johnson, president of
CustomerGrowth Partners, a retail consultancy.Meanwhile, consumerperception about the Target brand has
dropped steeply since the newsbroke Wednesday night, according to YouGov BrandIndex, which surveys4,300
people daily. The index ranges from 100 to negative 100 and iscompiled by subtracting negative customer
feedback from positivecustomer feedback.Before the breach, Target’s index was 26,higher than the rating of
12 of its peer group of retailers that includeWal-Mart. Now, it’s negative 19.Eric Hausman, a
Targetspokesman, declined to comment specifically on sales or the impact ofits 10 percent offer, but said
that stores "were busy."Target is based in Minneapolis and has nearly 1,800 stores in the U.S. and
124 in Canada.___AP writer Amy Forliti in Minneapolis contributed to the report.___Follow Anne D’Innocenzio
at http://www.Twitter.com/adinnocenzioCopyright
2013 The Associated Press. All rightsreserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten
orredistributed.

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