Target says it investigated but dismissed early signs of breach

Target said Thursday it investigated but ultimately dismissed early signs of a data breach, a decision it likely regrets after suffering one of the largest payment-card and personal-data breaches on record.

The retailer said it logs a vast number of technical events each week, and “a small amount of [the criminals’] activity was logged and surfaced to our team. That activity was evaluated and acted upon,” Molly Snyder, a Target spokeswoman, said in an emailed statement on Thursday.

“Based on their interpretation and evaluation of that activity, the team determined that it did not warrant immediate follow up,” Snyder wrote. “With the benefit of hindsight, we are investigating whether, if different judgments had been made the outcome may have been different.”