The patrons of more than 1,000 Wendy’s fast-food restaurants nationwide who used their credit or debit cards, may have been the victims of cyberattack.
According to a press release on the corporate website, The Wendy’s Company believes the criminal cyberattacks resulted from service providers’ remote access credentials being compromised, allowing access – and the ability to deploy malware – to some franchisees’ point-of-sale systems.
“We are committed to protecting our customers and keeping them informed. We sincerely apologize to anyone who has been inconvenienced as a result of these highly sophisticated, criminal cyberattacks involving some Wendy’s restaurants,” said Todd Penegor, President and Chief Executive Officer. “We have conducted a rigorous investigation to understand what has occurred and apply those learnings to further strengthen our data security measures.”
Although 72 locations in NJ were affected, only two near Dunellen were possibly hacked: Edison (Parsonage Road) and Somerset (Easton Avenue). Bridgewater, Middlesex, New Brunswick, Piscataway, Plainfield, South Plainfield, and Watchung were not on the list of compromised franchises.
Those who believe that they might be affected by the malware can visit https://www.wendys.com/en-us/about-wendys/the-wendys-company-updates for information on how customers can protect their credit and details regarding how potentially affected customers can receive one year of complimentary fraud consultation and identity restoration services.
For locations in NJ and elsewhere that were affected, check https://payment.wendys.com/paymentcardcheck.html