In the single largest case of identity theft prosecution, eleven people were charged by the US Justice Department with stealing above 400 million credit and debit card numbers from nine major retailers across the country. The Attorney-General revealed that the cost of the theft to citizens might run up to billions of dollars and many would not find out that they have been duped till months or even years from now.

Federal grand juries in San Diego and Boston passed indictments on the eleven defendants of whom three were residents of US and the others of countries like China, Estonia and Ukraine. All the defendants were charged with identity theft, fraud and conspiracy. Federal prosecutors alleged that the defendants hacked into the retailers’ data networks with their laptops, stored the information in personal computers which remained in the US or other East European countries and then converted the stolen information into usable bank cards.

Some of the retailers which found themselves at the receiving end of this massive fraud ring are TJX Cos, BJ’s Wholesale Club Inc, Marshall’s, Barnes & Noble Inc bookstores, Dave and Busters restaurants, Boston Market Corp, DSW Inc shoe stores, Sports Authority and Forever 21. In January 2007 TJX had previously been invaded by hackers who stole information on 45.7 million card numbers. The company had to settle expensive claims with credit card companies as well as with the Federal Trade Commission.

-Kalyani Mookherji