cyberattacks

major restaurant chain hacked again, more cyber security needed

Chillis, a large chain of restaurants was hit with a major cyber-attack in 2018.

The chain restaurant reports the attack occurred between March and April 2018

Do you believe your credit information is safe when you eat out? If you believe so, think again! Chillis stock symbol is found by typing eat. Well, the restaurant chain sure ate it on this one.

Between March and April of 2018, Chili’s restaurants were hit by a data breach that may have compromised some guests’ payment card information. The breach was discovered last Friday, according to a press release by Brinker International, which owns the 1,600+ location chain.

Per Chili’s press release:

♬ Hey you got maybe hacked, maybe-hacked, maybe-hacked ♬

♬ Hey you got maybe hacked, maybe-hacked, maybe-hacked ♬

♬ Chili’s got hacked, baby, hacked ♬

Ok, I’m going to level with you. That wasn’t the press release. And I will probably never get a PR job with Chillis. But seriously, how could you even be mad at that?

Back to the real press release, though. Here is what happened:

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On May 11, 2018, we learned that some of our Guests’ payment card information was compromised at certain Chili’s restaurants as the result of a data incident. Currently, we believe the data incident was limited to between March – April 2018; however, we continue to assess the scope of the incident. We deeply value our relationships with our Guests and sincerely apologize to those who may have been affected.

Chili’s immediately launched into its response plan and is currently working with third-party forensic experts to investigate exactly what happened.

Based on the information currently available, it appears as though malware was used to collect payment card information, specifically credit and debit card numbers and cardholder names, used during in-restaurant purchases at affected restaurants.

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Chili’s does not collect certain personal information (such as your social security number, your full date of birth, or federal or state identification number). Therefore, this personal information was not compromised.

Chili’s suggests that all customers monitor their bank accounts for any unauthorized transactions. So far the complete scope of the breach is not known, including how many restaurants were affected and how many customers had their data compromised. The restaurant will continue to issue updates as they become available.

Overall, Chili’s handled this situation with aplomb. We’ve reached a point where, for big companies, data breaches aren’t a matter of if, they’re a matter of when. Chili’s had a contingency plan in place, it disclosed the breach within 72 hours of its discovery (something that would make GDPR compliance specialists proud) and the company is communicating clearly and giving customers actionable advice to help ensure that they aren’t negatively impacted.

All in all, at least externally, Chili’s has handled itself fine here. Besides, a data breach is not what keeps successful chain restaurants up awake at night. Millennials are the prime source of stress.

It is important for Chillis ensure that their customers continue dining at their restaurants. In order to create trust, the chain will be forced to spend more money for cyber security. That’s where readers of our ABCO Technology articles will benefit. If you want a promising career in cyber security, contact ABCO Technology. You can reach our campus between 9 AM and 6 PM Monday through Friday at: (310) 216-3067.

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Los Angeles, Ca. 90304

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