Hudson’s Bay Company (HBC) is among the latest companies to fall prey to a major data breach. Customer payment and card information were stolen from some HBC divisions such as Saks Fifth Avenue, Saks Off Fifth and Lord & Taylor stores across North America.
HBC has remained tight-lipped about the breach, but a cybersecurity research firm has revealed that both credit and debit card information was stolen from over 5 million customers.
The firm found that the Saks Off Fifth location at Bramalea City Centre was affected. Saks locations at Sherway Gardens and Pickering Town Centre were also affected by the breach.
The breach occurred when the outlet was in the process of switching from card-swipe technology to EMV chip technology, which is already common among most Canadian retailers.
The cybersecurity firm, Gemini Advisory, says the stolen data goes back as far as March 2017 and as late as just last month.
HBC is recommending all customers review their account statements for any activity they may not recognize. Gemini Advisory’s co-founder Dmitry Chorine recommends being extra cautious by visiting the bank and getting cards replaced instead of just waiting.
For now, HBC says it will continue to investigate and that customers won’t be responsible for any fraudulent charges that occur as a result of the breach. Once the company learns more about the data breach, it will also offer free identity protection services to any customers affected.