Massive grocery store chain credit card hack announced
Buy food at a grocery store? You've probably been hacked.
In the latest in a never-ending chain of credit card hacks, Albertson's grocery stores announced Friday that its payment processor had been victim of a massive cybercrime. Impacted brands include Albertson’s, ACME Markets, Jewel-Osco, and Shaw’s and Star Markets. The hack started June 22 and ended July 17, the firm said in a statement on its website.
Here's a list of states where stores were shoppers need to worry: Albertson's in Southern California, Idaho, Montana, North Dakota, Nevada, Oregon, Washington, Wyoming and Southern Utah -- ACME Markets in Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware and New Jersey; -- Jewel-Osco stores in Iowa, Illinois and Indiana -- and Shaw’s and Star Markets stores in Maine, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire and Rhode Island.
Shoppers at SUPERVALU, which uses the same processing technology, are also impacted, Albertson's announcement said.
“We know our customers are concerned about the security of their payment card data, and we work hard to protect it,” said Mark Bates, Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer at AB Acquisition LLC, Albertson's parent firm. “As soon as we were notified of the incident, we began working closely with SUPERVALU to determine what happened. It’s important to note that there is no evidence at this point that consumer data has been misused.”
The firm also noted that it's possible the window of time, or the number or stores impacted, might increase as the investigation continues.
Impacted shoppers will be offered 12 months of complimentary consumer identity protection services through AllClear ID.