Target offering customers 1 year free credit monitoring after 120 million hit by data breach

When Target shoppers swiped

their card during the busiest time of the holiday shopping season they trusted their card information would be safe.  Little did they know that Target would announce a breach in their system that compromised debit, credit and Red Card data customers across the nation.

This week brought news that the breach was

Now almost two months out from the original attack Target is offering a peace offering, of sorts to their customers.  Starting today Target shoppers can register for one year of free credit monitoring via a new site launched this morning.

, where you'll be met with this greeting:

"Thank you for your patience, understanding and loyalty to Target. Target is partnering with Experian® to offer one year of free credit monitoring for all guests who shopped our U.S. stores. For more details on the offer please go to:

"

The offer is valid until April 23.  They insist the information is not being used for any other purpose other than credit monitoring.

The credit monitoring service is sponsored by Protect My ID via Experian.  The service is normally $15.95 a month.  The plan includes identity surveillance, internet scan and identity theft resolution.

The site address is

Some quick math - if 120 million customers register for this free offer which is valued at $191.40 per customer for a year of service, that would be $22,968,000,000 in customer apology.

So will you be registering for the free service?  Do you think Target should do more?  Is this a fair or responsible response by Target corporate?

If you purchase a product or register for an account through a link on our site, we may receive compensation. By using this site, you consent to our User Agreement and agree that your clicks, interactions, and personal information may be collected, recorded, and/or stored by us and social media and other third-party partners in accordance with our Privacy Policy.