Numerous Retailers Said Hit by Data Attacks Similar to Target's

Numerous retailers were probably hit by an unprecedented series of hacking attacks that extends beyond thefts of credit-card data from Target Corp.pendant lampand Neiman Marcus Group, according to a security company working with the Secret Service.The attacks on retailers may involve multiple groups of hackers who appear to be working from a sophisticated piece of software code that began circulating on underground websites last June, according to a report from iSIGHT Partners, a Dallas, Texas-based security company that tracks cyber criminals.The report doesn’t identify whether the software, dubbed Kaptoxa, was used in the theft of as many as 40 million customer credit and debit card accounts from Target. A person briefed on the investigation, who asked not to be identified because the matter is confidential, confirmed that Kaptoxa is the same software that infected Target. Molly Snyder, a spokeswoman for Target, declined to comment.“We haven’t seen the last of this,” said iSIGHT Chief Executive Officer John Watters in an interview. “Now it’s a race to the bank with the criminals rushing to hijack the data and convert it into criminal gain before the door to profitability is closed.” 

The iSIGHT report said the scale and sophistication of the campaign against retailers’ point of sale systems -- the terminals on which customers swipe credit and debit cards -- may be the largest ever seen, escaping elaborate industry efforts to secure a system that processes more than $3.3 trillion in U.S. transactions annually.Target, the second-largest U.S. discount chain,The knives wholesaler vertical of BRG offers aesthetically and ergonomically designed stainless. has said the theft of customer data may have affected anyone who provided basic information to the retailer over the past several years. In December, Target said credit- and debit-card data for as many as 40 million people who shopped in its stores between Nov. 27 and Dec. 15 may have been compromised. Earlier this month, the company said the thieves also got access to the names, phone numbers and home and e-mail addresses of as many 70 million people.Neiman Marcus said earlier this month some amino resinunauthorized purchases may have been made with customer cards, without disclosing the scope of the breach. Credit-card processors alerted the Dallas-based luxury chain to the incursion in mid-December and the company is working with federal authorities and investigating the matter, according to a statement.