Cyberattacks target in-store sales systems

Cyberthieves are increasingly targeting credit card information from point-of-sale systems, Tokyo-based information security company Trend Micro Inc. has warned.

It’s a problem shared by countries worldwide, and Japan is no exception, the company said.

POS attacks involve the use of computer viruses to intercept and extract confidential data from systems used to process credit card settlements and manage customer information as well as product sales records and inventories. The systems also play a role in marketing, through analysis of store-by-store sales trends and inventories.