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Macy's Inc M acknowledged in a letter to customers it was the victim of a data breach and personal information could have been compromised.

What To Know About The Macy's Data Breach

Macy's believes an unauthorized third party gained access to its system and added an unauthorized computer code to two pages on macys.com. The code allowed the third party to gain information customers submitted on the online checkout page (if credit card data was entered) and the wallet page.

Some of the information that may have been compromised include payment card numbers, corresponding security codes, expiration dates, among other pieces of information.

The code was removed from macys.com on Oct. 15

Macy's believes cybercriminals are unable to open new accounts with the stolen data and consumers are urged to contact their card issuer to discuss appropriate steps.

Why The Timing Of Macy's Breach Is Important

Macy's isn't the only company to suffer a data breach and is unlikely to be the last one. The retailer continues to work hard to remain relevant, but some analysts aren't hopeful of a long-lasting turnaround. The timing of the data breach is unfortunate ahead of the holiday season.

Macy's will work with federal law enforcement agencies who will likely investigate the theft. Macy's also tasked a leading forensic firm to assist in its investigation and steps to safeguard the online store has already been initiated.

Macy's stock traded down about 10% to $15.18 per share at the time of publication.