[Dataloss] follow-up: TJX chief apologizes for data breach

[security curmudgeon]

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: InfoSec News <alerts at infosecnews.org>

http://www.boston.com/business/ticker/2007/06/tjx_chief_apolo.html

By Jenn Abelson, Globe staff
June 5, 2007

ATLANTA -- At her first shareholder meeting as chief executive of TJX 
Cos., Carol Meyerowitz apologized for the Framingham merchant's recent 
security breach that involved the theft of at least 45.7 million credit 
and debit card numbers and said she wished the incident -- the biggest 
loss of personal data reported -- never happened.

Meyerowitz, who took over the helm of the company in January, said 
increasingly sophisticated cyber criminals are a global and complex 
problem for government agencies, hospitals, universities, and retailers 
who have all suffered attacks in recent years. Despite having security 
measures in place, TJX said hackers still managed to get into its systems.

"But we had locks," Meyerowitz said.

It was one of the first times TJX held its annual shareholder meeting 
outside of its hometown Framingham. Only a handful of shareholders 
attended yesterday's meeting and none asked about the security breach. The 
company refused questions from the media.

A company spokeswoman said the shareholder meeting coincided with a yearly 
off-site trip by the board of directors. This year Atlanta was selected 
because it is one of TJX's largest markets and the company operates a 
distribution center in a nearby town.

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