Target CIO Resigns: "It's Time for a Change"
"It's time for a change," said former Target CIO Beth Jacob who resigned as of Wednesday, March 5. In 2002 Jacob joined Target as director of guest contact centers, then serving as vice president of guest operations for two years prior to being promoted to CIO in 2008. Under her guidance, Target took back its online operations, which it had previously outsourced to Amazon.
While Jacob was in charge of IT for a retailer that fell victim to a data breach that resulted in the compromise of 40 million credit cards and the personal information of 70 million customers. But should she resign?
In a letter to CEO Gregg Steinhafel obtained by MarketWatch, Jacob wrote, "This is a difficult decision after 12 rewarding years, but this is a good time for a change. This is a time of significant transformation for the retail industry and for Target. With the quality of its talent and the power of its brand, I'm confident Target will embrace the current opportunities and continue to be strong and successful in the future."
Following Jacob's departure, Target will look to an outside company for an interim CIO. The company will also look to fill two new positions: a chief compliance officer and a chief information security officer. At the same time, its hired Promontory Financial Group to aid in an evaluation of its technology, structure, processes and talent as part of the transformation.
The retailer also revealed that it will invest more than $100 million in cards equipped with chips and protected by pin entry, which are less prone to hacking than the traditional magnetic-stripe and signature cards.
"While we are still in the process of an ongoing investigation, we recognize that the information security environment is evolving rapidly," said Steinhafel in a statement released last Wednesday. "To ensure that Target is well positioned following the data breach we suffered last year, we are undertaking an overhaul of our information security and compliance structure and practices at Target."
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While Jacob was in charge of IT for a retailer that fell victim to a data breach that resulted in the compromise of 40 million credit cards and the personal information of 70 million customers. But should she resign?
In a letter to CEO Gregg Steinhafel obtained by MarketWatch, Jacob wrote, "This is a difficult decision after 12 rewarding years, but this is a good time for a change. This is a time of significant transformation for the retail industry and for Target. With the quality of its talent and the power of its brand, I'm confident Target will embrace the current opportunities and continue to be strong and successful in the future."
Following Jacob's departure, Target will look to an outside company for an interim CIO. The company will also look to fill two new positions: a chief compliance officer and a chief information security officer. At the same time, its hired Promontory Financial Group to aid in an evaluation of its technology, structure, processes and talent as part of the transformation.
The retailer also revealed that it will invest more than $100 million in cards equipped with chips and protected by pin entry, which are less prone to hacking than the traditional magnetic-stripe and signature cards.
"While we are still in the process of an ongoing investigation, we recognize that the information security environment is evolving rapidly," said Steinhafel in a statement released last Wednesday. "To ensure that Target is well positioned following the data breach we suffered last year, we are undertaking an overhaul of our information security and compliance structure and practices at Target."
For related content:
Target Invests $100M in Data Security
The Target of a Phishing Scandal
Target HVAC Systems Linked to Security Faux Pas
Huge Criminal Profits Are Being Made from Retail POS Says FBI
Target's CFO to Testify Before Congress on Data Breach
Target Identifies Suspects, Security Breaches Become Growing Concern
Target Off to a Rough Start in 2014
Target Data Breach Compromises 40M Cards