Newsroom

November 21, 2014

Target wants bank suit over data breach dropped

Almost a year after its massive data breach, Target Corp. is asking a federal judge in Minnesota to dismiss claims by five banks arguing on behalf of all financial institutions whose customers shopped there during the breach period.

Bloomberg reported Friday that the suit claims all those institutions collectively incurred tens of millions of dollars in costs due to the need to reissue credit and debit cards and to monitor accounts for fraudulent activity while reimbursing those who were victims of theft.

NAFCU's own research determined the event cost all card issuers, including credit unions, some $480 million in card replacement and other costs.

Target is expected to ask the judge to reject the case based on the fact that the retailer only deals with the banks through mediators, such as credit card companies, and was under no obligation to protect them.

Target has admitted missing warning signs of the breach, and NAFCU continues to push for action in Congress on a national data security standard for retailers and action addressing cybersecurity threats. The association was the first financial trade group to call for a national data security standard for retailers in the wake of the Target breach.