Waiting for More Shoes to Drop?

Another day, another data theft. Oh, did I say this before? Yeah, well, get used to it! News had leaked out a few weeks ago about a possible theft of a few thousand credit card numbers from shoe retailer DSW Shoe Warehouse. And of course the reality turns out to be worse. According to the AP, data thieves obtained 1.4 million customer names and credit card numbers, a full 10 times more than previous estimates.The article notes that DSW has begun alerting customers of 108 stores across 25 states, letting them know that their data may have been stolen during the period of November to February. The company has helpfully provided a list of the stores affected on their website.Sometimes the price of hoof-covers is higher than you think!But at least you'll have a reason to keep the shoebox: It'll be a great place to hide your stock certificates. Because, it seems, Ameritrade can't hold onto your data either. According to CNN, Ameritrade announced today that it lost some backup tapes full of customers' personal financial information. Up to 200,000 current and former customers may be affected. It's possible, says Ameritrade, that the missing tape may not have been stolen, and may simply be missing or may have been destroyed.Update: We talked about these issues, and my blog entry about Verizon's arrogant CEO, on tonight's David Lawrence Show.