Target Sued, Accused of Lack of Security Focus After Massive Data Breach

Target was hit with a class action lawsuit and widely criticized for its inadequate security practices after hackers stole credit card and sensitive personal information about tens of millions of customers. Target failed to heed several warnings from its security monitoring tools specifically designed to detect an intrusion as information "gushed out of its mainframe." Security officials noted that the company’s lack of a Chief Security Officer and "security-oriented culture" rendered it incapable of adequately responding to the incident. As a result, Target’s profits and consumer trust dwindled while it incurred lawsuits and costs that "could run into the billions.”