Recently, Target made the news not for their holiday shopping deals, but because a whopping 40 million people may have had their credit card information compromised by hackers. It’s estimated that cards may have been susceptible for 19 days, something that is sure to worry anyone who shopped at the retailer in that timeframe.
A new report takes a look at the entire incident and offers some tips to those who are worried about their cards. The advice also focuses on how to boost security in the future to ensure that your finances are protected.
First, if you know you shopped at Target during the compromised timeframe, then you might want to think about closing your account. At the very least, you need to keep a close eye on your bank or credit card account information and go into action immediately if something pops up that you never paid for.
This kind of watchfulness needs to extend well into the future, whether your card security was breached in this incident or not. A daily check-in can ensure that you’re able to alert your bank or card company when you’ve been compromised.
The report goes on to note that the credit option may be a safer bet than debit given the additional protection it can provide, and when the season is over, it’s wise to toss out receipts after tearing them up. And of course, don’t tell your card number to anyone you can’t trust.