Sometime after the holidays, TJX-owned stores, including T.J. Maxx, Marshalls, HomeGoods and other discount chains, will hold a sale for just one day when prices on all merchandise at its stores will be discounted by 15 percent off, says the Boston Herald.

While TJX calls it a “customer appreciation special event,” it’s actually a court-ordered markdown meant to provide “relief” to the millions of consumers whose data was stolen in a recent data breach of the company’s computer systems.

The sale is part of the deal to settle a class-action lawsuit that was filed in January 2007 following the company’s disclosure that hackers had stolen customer data. As many as 100 million accounts were exposed to fraud.
TJX’s settlement basically requires it to provide three years of credit-monitoring services, including identity-theft insurance, for about 454,500 consumers. The company also agreed to reimburse some customers costs of replacing driver’s licenses, and to give a small check or store voucher to the affected customers.

Iowa state lawmakers considering identity theft protection laws were warned that there may be unintended consequences in tightening information access that might negatively impact legitimate commerce, according to the Gazette.

Expert witnesses addressed a legislative study panel, asking them to balance complicated and competing factors in fighting online identity theft to avoid placing restrictions that impede lawful efforts to verify information for hiring, lending, enforcing laws or locating heirs or missing people.

The experts said unvalidated, single-factor authentication and an evolved cybercrime industry are the primary causes of identity theft, fraud and crime, not personal data availability and access to public records.