The malware went after the company's point-of-sale systems to steal credit card data More than 130 restaurants at the Cicis pizza chain were the recent target of hackers, and customers’ credit card data may have been stolen.The company reported the data breach on Tuesday and posted a list of the restaurants affected, most of which are located in Texas.The hackers struck by secretly installing malware into the restaurant’s point-of-sale systems. Other companies, including fast-food chain Wendy’s and retailer Target, have been attacked in the same way in order to steal payment card data.In Cicis’ case, the hackers started targeting the restaurants as early as 2015. But most of the intrusions began this March, when the company began noticing problems with the point-of-sale system, it said in a statement. The pizza chain has eliminated the malware, it said. But in many instances, the infections remained at the restaurants for three months before they were contained. Some compromises lasted for close to a year.Hackers have been striking point-of-sale systems because they represent “the weakest link” in the security chain for retailers, said George Rice, a payment security expert with Hewlett-Packard Enterprise. “Because checkout terminals are in constant use and usually patched less frequently, they are more vulnerable to malware that steals cardholder data,” he said in an email.Hackers are gaining access to the point of sale systems usually by stealing the login credentials or guessing the passwords to the remote web interfaces that can control them. The hackers can then easily distribute the malware to hundreds, and even thousands, of checkout machines.To prevent the breaches, retailers should upgrade their systems, Rice said. This can involve using encryption or tokenization to secure any customer data that might end up stolen.Cicis has already alerted payment card companies about the breach. The company is warning customers to be on alert for fraudulent credit card charges. Related content news Chinese state actors behind espionage attacks on Southeast Asian government The distinct groups of activities formed three different clusters, each attributed to a specific APT group. By Shweta Sharma Sep 25, 2023 4 mins Advanced Persistent Threats Advanced Persistent Threats Cyberattacks feature How to pick the best endpoint detection and response solution EDR software has emerged as one of the preeminent tools in the CISO’s arsenal. Here’s what to look for and what to avoid when choosing EDR software. By Linda Rosencrance Sep 25, 2023 10 mins Intrusion Detection Software Security Monitoring Software Data and Information Security feature Top cybersecurity M&A deals for 2023 Fears of recession, rising interest rates, mass tech layoffs, and conservative spending trends are likely to make dealmakers cautious, but an ever-increasing need to defend against bigger and faster attacks will likely keep M&A activity steady in By CSO Staff Sep 22, 2023 24 mins Mergers and Acquisitions Data and Information Security IT Leadership brandpost Unmasking ransomware threat clusters: Why it matters to defenders Similar patterns of behavior among ransomware treat groups can help security teams better understand and prepare for attacks By Joan Goodchild Sep 21, 2023 3 mins Cybercrime Podcasts Videos Resources Events SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER From our editors straight to your inbox Get started by entering your email address below. Please enter a valid email address Subscribe