ST. JOHNSBURY VERMONT
Several hundred Passumpsic Savings Bank customers are being asked to check their bank statements for fraudulent activity in light of recent computer data thefts announced by TJX Cos., parent company of Marshalls and T.J. Maxx.

Craig Lantagne, senior vice president of Passumpsic Savings Bank, said Friday that some of the bank's customers were involved when the computer systems of TJX were breached.

"Anybody that was on the compromised list should receive a letter in the next day or two," Lantagne said. "We're recommending to our customers, and to anybody that has a debit card, to make sure they review their statements in a timely manner."

Last week, TJX announced that hackers had broken into a computer system that handles credit and debit card transactions as well as checks and merchandise returns for customers in the United States and Puerto Rico. Customer accounts from the U.K. and Ireland may be affected as well, the company said.

Some early reports have indicated the number of affected customers could be more than 40 million, but Sherry Lang, spokeswoman for TJX, said only a "limited number" of credit and debit cards were compromised. Although early in its investigation, the company does not believe any personal identification numbers (PINs) were compromised, according to information on its Web site.

As far as the company knows, the breach happened last May, according to Lang, who said the breach might involve credit card information dating back to 2003.

At the request of law enforcement officials, news of the unauthorized intrusion was kept under wraps after its initial discovery in mid-December until Jan. 17 when the company made its announcement.

Lantagne said that during a compromise like this, customers have zero liability under MasterCard rules. In other words, he said, if there is fraudulent activity on a customer's card, the bank would, of course, conduct an investigation, but would reimburse the customer if the activity was indeed fraudulent.

Lantagne said Passumpsic Savings Bank customers have all been mailed new debit cards and a letter from the bank outlining what steps they should take.

Information on the TJX Web site, www.tjx.com, states the company is conducting a full investigation of the intrusion with the assistance of several leading computer security and incident response firms. The company is still seeking to determine what other customer information may have been compromised. TJX has not reported any fraudulent purchases at this point.

The company has established a hotline for concerned customers, 866-484-6978. Information is also available on the Web site.