11/01/2022
Target's security and payments system was broken into by hackers, who installed malware with the intent of stealing Target's customers' information. The malware targeted “40 million credit card numbers—and 70 million addresses, phone numbers, and other pieces of personal information”. About six months before this happened, Target invested 1.6 million dollars to install the malware detection tool made by FireEye, whose security product is also used by CIA. It is reasonably reliable software and it spotted the malware, but it was not stopped at any level in Target's security department. The malware successfully came away with all the information it wanted. Target's unresponsiveness to the alerts resulted the exposure of the confidential information of one in three United States consumers.
