Compromise third-party vendor The attackers backed their way into Target's corporate network by compromising a third-party vendor. After drilling down, Krebs found a page listing HVAC and refrigeration companies.Ģ. 'A simple Google search turns up Target's Supplier Portal, which includes a wealth of information for new and existing vendors and suppliers about how to interact with the company, submit invoices, etc.,' adds Krebs in this blog post. 'The case study also describes Target's technical infrastructure, including POS system information.' 'Reconnaissance would have revealed a detailed case study on the Microsoft website describing how Target uses Microsoft virtualization software, centralized name resolution, and Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager to deploy security patches and system updates,' writes Radichel. Teri Radichel in this GIAC (GSEC) dissertation explains how the attackers may have gleaned information about Target's infrastructure. Preliminary survey We don't know for certain if or how the attackers performed reconnaissance on Target's network prior to the attack, but it wouldn't have required much more than a simple internet search. Had any of these steps been noticed and countered, the attack would likely have fallen apart.ġ. Now let's look at the sequence of events that precipitated the data breach. To put that in perspective, the attackers pilfered 11 gigabytes of data. Target informed about 110 million credit/debit-card wielding shoppers, who made purchases at one of the company's stores during the attack, that their personal and financial information had been compromised. 'The sources said the breach appears to have begun on or around Black Friday 2013 - by far the busiest shopping day the year.'

'Nationwide retail giant Target is investigating a data breach potentially involving millions of customer credit and debit card records,' mentioned Krebs. On December 18th, security blogger Brian Krebs broke the story in this post. As of December 15th, Target had a third-party forensic team in place and the attack mitigated.

Target personnel discovered the breach and notified the U.S. Are we any the wiser? Have lessons been learned? Although not every detail has been made public, experts have developed an unofficial attack timeline that exposes critical junctures in the attack and highlights several points at which it could have been stopped.

Target's infamous data breach happened just over a year ago.

Massive attack level 4