Update: BankInfoSecurity.com is reporting that a class action lawsuit has been filed against the Supervalu supermarket chain following the latest details of the supermarket's data breach.
Today, Supervalu and its Supermarket chains announced data breach, alerting their customers of potential POS data compromise.
Supervalu says the unauthorized access to its systems began no earlier June 22th, and lasted until July 17th. The breach affected not just Supervalu operating stores such as Cubs Food, and Shop ‘n Save, but other big supermarkets such as Jewel-Osco and Acme Markets, which use Supervalu’s IT services. Full listings of affected stores are listed at the bottom of this article.
Supervalu president and CEO Sam Duncan claimed in an Aug. 15 statement that “The intrusion was identified by our internal team, it was quickly contained, and we have had no evidence of any misuse of any customer data. I regret any inconvenience that this may cause our customers but want to assure them that it is safe to shop in our stores.”
Compromised Details:
The compromised data includes:
Jewel-Osco claims that sensitive information, such as Social Security Numbers, birth dates, and driver license information, were not affected since those information are not collected during the payment process.
Identity Theft Risks
Although Supervalu says that there are no evidences of any misuse of customer data, the data can be easily employed to commit fraud.
It is strongly advised for customers who shopped at following list stores to monitor their credit regularly. Jewel-Osco’s customers whose payment cards may have been affected can use AllClear ID’s complimentary consumer identity protection services. The call center operates starting 3PM CT, Friday, at 1-855-865-4449.
List of Stores Affected
Supervalu Chain Stores:
Partner Stores:
Roughly 200 stores under Supervalu chain, excluding their partner stores, has been reported to be breached. WSJ article wrote that sources familiar with the situation predict that as many as 1,000 stores may have been breached.
Supervalu is just one of many companies that have suffered a data breach in past this three months. Ebay had a massive data breach past end of May, exposing 145,000,000 of its customers information. A month ago, P.F. Chang’s China Bistro confirmed a data breach affecting locations across the U.S. and was forced to use manual credit card processing system for a whole month.