TJX Settlement: Is This Really The Message We Want Sent?
Written by Evan SchumanJune 24th, 2009
When a group of 41 U.S. states announced a settlement with TJX this week—a supposed punishment for the retail chain, in the words of one state attorney general, for treating sensitive payment card information "like trash"—it was billed in some circles as a painful lesson for retailers who treat security laxly. The truth is, the lesson was just the opposite.The $9.75 Million Payment
At a glance, a payment of almost $10 million sounds like a lot, until you delve deeper. None of the dollars were punitive per se. The smallest slice--$1.75 million—went to reimburse the legal and administrative costs of the states investigating the breach and negotiating this settlement for two-and-a-half years.
The deal (see our full coverage of the terms of the settlement) consisted of three elements: Payment; new security rules; the need to report back to the states. How painful were any of those elements for the $19 billion owner of Marshalls, T.J. Maxx, HomeGoods, A.J. Wright, HomeSense and Winners? Let's take a look at each.
At a glance, a payment of almost $10 million sounds like a lot, until you delve deeper. None of the dollars were punitive per se. The smallest slice--$1.75 million—went to reimburse the legal and administrative costs of the states investigating the breach and negotiating this settlement for two-and-a-half years.
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Is there really an improvement between a mag swipe and contactless tap if multi-factor authentication is required?
-Ed
