If you haven’t already begun receiving messages in your smartphone or in your inbox about the “unprecedented security” of shopping online and in store with your favorite retailer this holiday season, you soon will.
According to sources connected to major retailers including Target, a marketing blitz not only for holiday shopping but for holiday shopping security looms ahead.
Though Target has high hopes for recovering after last year’s hacking debacle, it’s likely that they’ll only see a fraction of their usual holiday figures. A recent survey of shoppers has found that about 45% of respondents would “definitely not” or “probably not” spend their holiday money at stores that suffered security breaches last year, the largest of those retailers being Target.
The survey also found that about half of everyone who responded were going to be paying for items in cash, rather than using debit or credit cards, to protect their personal information from hackers. Matt Schulz, of creditcards.com is quoted by HuffPost saying that “It’s a clear sign that people are at least somewhat concerned about shopping in a place that has had a data breach.”
Last year’s breaches occurred in the middle of the most popular shopping time and in the Target breach alone, more than 40 million shoppers had their information compromised. This led to serious loss in sales and a mass re-issue of debit and credit cards in the weeks ahead.
Other stores that were hacked included Neiman Marcus and Home Depot. Spokespeople for these stores have said that they are better prepared this year and they hope that efforts over the last year and promotions will still draw in buyers.
