You know why you should always keep a close eye on your credit card activity? Because hackers can target any kind of establishment, whether they're huge corporations, mom-and-pop shops or, in this case, grocery chains. American chains SuperValu and Albertsons have just revealed that digital brigands recently broke into their computer networks and, worse, were able to access the portions where customers' credit or debit card details are stored. SuperValu owns Cub Foods, Farm Fresh, Hornbacher's, Shop 'n Save, and Shoppers Food and Pharmacy -- 180 outlets of which were compromised -- while Albertsons is one of its former properties. The security breach happened entirely on SuperValu's end, though, as it still provides Albertsons with IT services despite selling it back in 2006.
To be clear, only those who've shopped at affected outlets from June 22nd to July 17th are at risk, and SuperValu claims it isn't even 100 percent sure if any data was stolen at all. The company says it's only "making this announcement out of an abundance of caution" and that the intrusion has already been contained. Still, it may be wise to look up your details every once in a while, just to be sure they're not being offered up for sale in shady forums.
Want to know which outlets suffered a security breach, exactly? Part of Albertsons' statement reads:
For those who've visited SuperValu properties within the aforementioned timespan, make sure to check this PDF store list to know if you need to keep an eye out for any suspicious activity.Based on information we have at this time, Albertsons stores in Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Louisiana, New Mexico, Texas and our two Super Saver Foods Stores in Northern Utah were not impacted by this incident. However, Albertsons stores in Southern California, Idaho, Montana, North Dakota, Nevada, Oregon, Washington, Wyoming and Southern Utah were impacted. In addition, ACME Markets in Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware and New Jersey; Jewel-Osco stores in Iowa, Illinois and Indiana; and Shaw's and Star Markets stores in Maine, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire and Rhode Island were all impacted by this incident.