It appears that the data breach victim of the week (perhaps of the year) is The Home Depot.  Brian Krebs has reported that it appears that two large dumps of purloined credit card numbers have made an appearance on the black market and that those numbers may have originated at Home Depot locations.   Krebs’ reporting is here.

This latest incident raises yet another round of concerns about the malware known as “Backoff” and the potential widespread effect on retailers.  We posted a Backoff update last week.  According to the New York Times, when one adds the compromised records in Target, PF Chang’s, Neiman Marcus, Sally Beauty, Michaels, UPS and others, the number of affected customers amounts to more than one-third of the U.S. population.

Roundup of some latest reporting on the Home Depot breach:

Home Depot Breach Could Be as Big as Target’s – Computerworld

What it Means for Home Depot if Breach is as Big as Target’s – Forbes

Home Depot Tries to Reassure Customers – Wall Street Journal

The Home Depot story is rapidly evolving and we will update as further information is available.