Dive Brief:
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Amid reports that credit-card data theft similar to the holiday-time data breaches at Target Corp. and Neiman Marcus stores has also occurred elsewhere, the U.S. Secret Service is looking into a data breach at Sears Holdings Corp., several news outlets reported over the weekend.
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Sears said it had no such evidence, however, and would say only that it is reviewing its systems to ensure that nothing had happened.
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Last week the Hoffman Estates, IL- based company reported smaller Q4 losses than in the last couple of years.
Dive Insight:
Last week the U.S. Secret Service announced data break-ins at two retailers that it would not name, just days after U.S. attorney general Eric H. Holder, Jr. urged Congress to pass legislation requiring retailers to make significant customer data breaches known in a timely manner. Target, and especially Neiman Marcus, have been criticized for taking too long to alert customers of the issues. If Sears is one of the latest discovered victims of cyber-thieves, it should probably find out as soon as possible and let its customers know pronto. Certainly, it’s the last thing the beleaguered company needs, but it won’t help matters to drag its feet.