IT Security Stories to Watch: Home Depot Data Breach Hearings Begin

The Home Depot (HD) tops this week’s list of IT security newsmakers after court proceedings related to the home improvement giant’s data breach began last Friday. Home Depot’s data breach was first reported in September 2014 and resulted in the theft of roughly 56 million customer credit cards and pin numbers.

New York State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, online shoe retailer Office and offsite airport parking service Park ‘N Fly also made this week’s list of IT security newsmakers to watch.

Here’s a closer look at four IT security stories that managed service providers (MSPs) need to know about for the week of Jan. 19:

1. Judge hears Home Depot data breach class action lawsuit

Court proceedings involving the Home Depot data breach are officially underway.

Home Depot faces more than 50 lawsuits from both banks and consumers due to last year’s data breach. The lawsuits contend that Home Depot officials knew the company was unprepared to deal with cyber threats.

Atlanta Judge William Thrash will oversee the hearings.

2. Will New York update its data breach security law?

President Obama is cracking down on corporate data breaches, and Schneiderman wants to make it a requirement for companies to notify consumers and employees in the event of a cyber attack too.

Schneiderman said he believes that New York’s current data breach security law requirements are “outdated and toothless” and need to be revised to better protect consumers and employees.

“It’s long past time we updated our data security law and expanded protections for consumers,” Schneiderman told The New York Times.

3. Office gets breached

More than 1 million Office customers could be affected by a recent cyber attack against the European online shoe retailer. Computer Weekly reported that the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) issued a warning against the Office following the incident.

“The breach has highlighted two hugely important areas of data protection: The unnecessary storage of older personal data and the lack of security to protect data,” said Sally-Anne Poole, ICO’s enforcement group manager.

4. Park ‘N Fly informs customers about data security compromise

Park ‘N Fly last week announced that the security of certain payment cards used to make reservations through its e-commerce website may have been compromised.

The offsite airport parking service said the issue has been contained, but Park ‘N Fly officials are encouraging customers to take steps to protect their identity and financial information.

Park ‘N Fly also is offering identity monitoring and protection services to potentially affected customers free of charge for the next year.

What do you think will be the biggest IT security stories for MSPs this week? Share your thoughts in the Comments section below, via Twitter @dkobialka or email me at [email protected].