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Everyone today is about convenience and safety. That is especially true when it comes to purchasing. The faster American’s can do something the more enticing it is. Credit or Debit? That question is as synonymous as “paper or plastic?” with today’s generation. But sometimes convenience means more vulnerability and risk than one would expect.

Yesterday eleven people were indicted on the largest ever identity theft. Over 40 million credit and debit card numbers were stolen from various stores through their wireless computer networks. The justice department believes that this is the largest hacking case they have ever prosecuted.

The men involved are not all from the United States. Only three reside in the US. Three are from Estonia, three are from Ukraine, Two are from China, one is from Belarus, and the eleventh man is known only as an alias and still remains at large. One of the Americans, , was linked to a 2003 hacking of the Dave and Buster’s franchise where over 5,000 credit and debit card information were stolen and over $600,000 worth of losses were subsequently incurred.

This indictments yesterday were the result of a 2 year long investigation that involved many popular stores. If you have shopped at any TJX stores you are at risk. The recognizable names of some of the stores involved are Marshall’s and T.J. Maxx, BJ’s Wholesale Club, Office Max, Barnes and Noble and Sports Authority. Some of the card information stolen was actually used. The men used various numbers and information, coded them onto magnetic strips, and then fed them into ATM machines to withdrawal tens of thousands of dollars at a time.

What is disturbing is that for two years the federal government and the stores involved knew there was a risk of and actual instances of personal information loss in which the public was not informed. For years people continued to shop at these various stores unaware of the investigation and information theft. Whether it was to avoid compromise in the investigation, avoid profit loss by deterring customers, or both, many people were inadvertently affected who may not have if the theft and vulnerabilities were made public sooner.

Many of us cannot even remember where we have shopped in the last two years, but have probably visited one of these stores in that time period. If so then we will be receiving a letter in the mail and have to watch our credit report, just in case. Just an example of how convenience isn’t always that convenient.

The days of cash and carry are almost a thing of the past. No longer can we go to the corner store and be a dollar short, but walk out with that gallon of milk and loaf of bread we needed. Instead we have our choice of massive grocery chains and gas stations where we never know the help and try and remember to lock our cars when we leave them in the parking lot to go inside. If convenience equals anonymity and impersonable experiences than maybe a little inconvenience keeps us all human. It is, after all, that little human interaction that keeps us all human ourselves, and perhaps is the key to keeping our identity along with individuality.

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