TJ Maxx 2015 Annual Report Download - page 30

Compromises of our data security could materially harm our reputation and business.
In the ordinary course of our business, we collect, store, process and transmit certain information from
individuals, such as our customers and Associates, including, for example, customer payment card and check
information. We rely in part on commercially available systems, software, tools and monitoring to provide
security for processing, transmission and storage of personal and/or confidential information. As with many
other companies, particularly in the retail industry, we are subject to attempts to compromise our data security.
Computer hackers may, for example, attempt to penetrate our computer systems or those of the third parties
with whom we work or to whom we outsource business operations and, if successful, misappropriate customer
or Associate information or confidential business information of our company. While we have taken steps
designed to further strengthen the security of our computer system since the unauthorized intrusion(s) into our
network discovered late in 2006, in which we believe customer data were stolen, there can be no assurance that
we will not suffer a future data compromise, that unauthorized parties will not gain access to the information that
we collect, store, process or transmit, or that any such data compromise or unauthorized access will be
discovered in a timely way. In addition, an Associate, contractor or third party with whom we do business or to
whom we outsource business operations may fail to monitor their or our systems effectively, may fail to maintain
appropriate safeguards or one of those parties may misuse the personal or confidential information to which they
have access, may attempt to circumvent our security measures in order to access or misappropriate such types
of information or may purposefully or, through error, inadvertently cause a breach involving, or otherwise
disclose, such information. Advances in computer and software technology and capabilities, rapid changes in
the sources, methods and targets of cyber-attacks and other developments, including the increasing
sophistication of cyber criminals generally, may increase the risk of such a breach.
Compromise of our data security or that of third parties with whom we do business or to whom we
outsource business operations, including through cyber-attacks or other external or internal methods, failure to
prevent or mitigate the loss of personal or business information and delays in detecting any such compromise or
loss could disrupt our operations, damage our reputation and decrease our customers’ willingness to shop in
our stores or online, impact our ability to attract and retain customers, violate applicable laws, regulations,
orders and agreements, and subject us to additional costs and liabilities which could be material.
Failure to operate information systems and implement new technologies effectively could disrupt our business or
reduce our sales or profitability.
We rely extensively on various information systems, including data centers, hardware and software and
applications to manage many aspects of our business, including to process and record transactions in our
stores, to enable effective communication systems, to plan and track inventory flow, to manage logistics, to
generate performance and financial reports and to operate our e-commerce sites. We are dependent on the
integrity, security and consistent operations of these systems and related back-up systems. Supporting these
internal and external systems requires a number of resources, including effective and qualified, and in some
cases, specialized, teams. As we grow and as our systems evolve, we must continue to hire, train, manage and
retain these teams, including to support our customized and legacy systems, in an effective way. Our computer
systems and the third-party systems we rely on are also subject to damage or interruption from a number of
causes, including power outages; computer and telecommunications failures; computer viruses or malware;
security breaches; cyber-attacks; catastrophic events such as fires, floods, earthquakes, tornadoes and
hurricanes; acts of war or terrorism; and design or usage errors by our Associates or contractors. Although we
seek to maintain our systems effectively, manage our team of internal and third party resources effectively and
successfully address the risk of compromises of the integrity, security and consistent operations of our systems,
we may not be successful in doing so. Compromises, interruptions or shutdowns of our systems, including
those managed by third parties, whether intentional or inadvertent, could lead to delays in our business
operations and, if significant or extreme, affect our results of operations. In addition, any interruption in the
operation of our websites, particularly our e-commerce sites, could cause us to suffer reputational harm or to
lose sales if customers are unable to access our site or purchase merchandise from us during such an
interruption.
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