Hannaford, a chain of medium sized supermarkets, was one of many companies that have been victims large and sophisticated Albert Gonzalez hacking operation. Gonzalez hack million credit card numbers and debit presentation, and Hannaford responded by going beyond protecting customers a similar violation in the future. For starters, the company hired General Dynamics, a leading cyber security contractor for the Defense Ministry to upgrade its security infrastructure. Improvements include a network monitoring service from IBM that provides instant alerts to "intrusive traffic" as well as the highest PIN encryption level available and new intrusion prevention systems. While Hannaford can not claim that the new security measures are infallable, using a debit or credit card at a supermarket Hanaford is certainly safer than it was when the team Gonzalez hacked int o the network in 2007.
Hannaford dedication to securing sensitive customer data is admirable and should be emulated by other companies. But unfortunately, most retailers are less vigilant, and hackers are always working to find new flaws in the armor. Which is why, for the moment, protection against identity theft is always a very wise and worthwhile investment.