Staples hit by data breach, with customers in Northeast hit

Office retailer Staples was the latest high-profile company hit by a data breach, with customers in the Northeastern United States affected. The US Secret Service is now investigating the incident, which involved debit and credit card data of an unknown number of customers. It appears retail locations in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York were hit, but it's possible stores in other states were also targeted.

"We take the protection of customers information very seriously, and are working to resolve the situation," Staples said in a statement. "If Staples discovers an issue, it is important to note that customers are not responsible for any fraudulent activity on their credit cards that is reported on a timely basis."

Retailers are struggling to keep data secure, as similar attacks have victimized Target, Home Depot, Kmart, Sears, with millions of customers across the country affected by these breaches.