Hannaford is a national grocery chain whose electronic payment processing system was breached by hackers as early as December 7, 2007. The hackers stole up to 4.2 million credit and debit card numbers, expiration dates, and security codes, but did not steal customer names. On February 27, 2008, Visa Inc. notified Hannaford that Hannaford’s system had been breached. Hannaford discovered the means of access on March 8, 2008, and contained the breach on March 10, 2008. Hannaford gave notice to certain financial institutions on March 10, 2008. On March 17, 2008, “Hannaford publicly announced for the first time that between December 7, 2007 and March 10, 2008, the security of its information technology systems had been breached, leading to the theft of as many as 4.2 million debit card and credit card numbers belonging to individuals who had made purchases at more than 270 of its stores.” It also announced “that it had already received reports of approximately 1,800 cases of fraud resulting from the theft of those numbers.” A number of affected customers sued Hannaford for breach of implied contract to recover losses arising from the unauthorized use of their credit and debit card data. Damages sought included the cost of replacement card fees when the issuing bank declined to issue a replacement card to them, fees for accounts overdrawn by fraudulent charges, fees for altering preauthorized payment arrangements, loss of accumulated reward points, inability to earn reward points during the transition to a new card, emotional distress, time and effort spent reversing unauthorized charges and protecting against further fraud, and the cost of purchasing identity theft/card protection insurance and credit monitoring services. Discuss the validity of their claim that Hannaford had breached an implied contract with its customers.
Hannaford is a national grocery chain whose electronic payment processing system was breached by hackers as early as December 7, 2007. The hackers stole up to 4.2 million credit and debit card numbers, expiration dates, and security codes, but did not steal customer names. On February 27, 2008, Visa Inc. notified Hannaford that Hannaford’s system had been breached. Hannaford discovered the means of access on March 8, 2008, and contained the breach on March 10, 2008. Hannaford gave notice to certain financial institutions on March 10, 2008. On March 17, 2008, “Hannaford publicly announced for the first time that between December 7, 2007 and March 10, 2008, the security of its information technology systems had been breached, leading to the theft of as many as 4.2 million debit card and credit card numbers belonging to individuals who had made purchases at more than 270 of its stores.” It also announced “that it had already received reports of approximately 1,800 cases of fraud resulting from the theft of those numbers.” A number of affected customers sued Hannaford for breach of implied contract to recover losses arising from the unauthorized use of their credit and debit card data. Damages sought included the cost of replacement card fees when the issuing bank declined to issue a replacement card to them, fees for accounts overdrawn by fraudulent charges, fees for altering preauthorized payment arrangements, loss of accumulated reward points, inability to earn reward points during the transition to a new card, emotional distress, time and effort spent reversing unauthorized charges and protecting against further fraud, and the cost of purchasing identity theft/card protection insurance and credit monitoring services. Discuss the validity of their claim that Hannaford had breached an implied contract with its customers.
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