Chaos for 1,850 Target stores as cash registers go offline nationwide for TWO HOURS but brand insists secured customer data was not breached
- Target cash registers at all stores were down nationwide on Saturday afternoon
- Customers complained about not being able to pay for items amid a tech issue
- It took an hour for a customer to manually check out but some stores closed
- Concerned shoppers were reassured their details were not at risk
- Some customers praised the brand for how well employees handled it
- Store fed waiting customers popcorn and ice cream during the hot day
- But some customers admitted they wished they’d have gone to Walmart instead
Target stores are back up and running after a nationwide cash register glitch on Saturday.
Shoppers were unable to pay for items using the scanners for two hours.
‘We’re aware that guests are currently unable to make purchases at Target stores. Our teams are troubleshooting now and we apologize for the inconvenience. We will provide an update as soon as possible,’ Target tweeted.
Sunday night Target’s registers were fully back online, the company said in a statement.
Customers complained about not being able to pay for items amid a technology issue. A sign is posted explaining a technical glitch at a Target store in San Francisco on Saturday
Target cash registers at all stores were down nationwide on Saturday afternoon in the US. Customers wait at a Target store after a computer glitch prevented customers from checking out, in Plymouth Meeting, Pennsylvania
Customers wait on a long check out line at a Target store in San Francisco, California
Guests were able to purchase their merchandise again in all stores following the temporary outage earlier that was the result of an internal technology issue.
‘Our technology team worked quickly to identify and fix the issue, and we apologize for the inconvenience and frustration this caused for our guests,’ the company said in a statement.
Concerned shoppers were reassured their details were not at risk during the time when staff counters and self-checkout registers were down.
‘After an initial but thorough review, we can confirm that this was not a data breach or security-related issue, and no guest information was compromised at any time’, the statement continued.
NPR reported that staff at a store in the Columbia Heights neighborhood of Washington, D.C., sent all customers out and declared all stores were affected.
Target has 1,850 stores in the United States.
A customer in Blaine, Michigan called it a #TargetFail while sharing a video of the inconvenience.
An abandoned shopping cart sits at a Target store after a computer glitch prevented customers from checking out, in Plymouth Meeting, Pennsylvania
Another shopper in Tennessee pleaded for help after browsing the aisles.
As posts were shared online from Nevada to Texas, some customers praised the brand for how well employees handled the downtime.
‘It took me almost an hour to check out just now. Honestly the only reason you still got my money was because of employee Kevarian at the Blue Diamond Las Vegas location. He manually entered in every one of my items and was patient,’ wrote the Twitter user.
An Illinois woman said workers there made sure those waiting to checkout kept their energy up.
The customer joked: ‘Tensions are high and the ice cream is melting. They have provided us popcorn and green tea, but rations are fast diminishing. How I wish we had gone to Walmart. Pray for us.’
‘The poor people @Target,’ one Twitter user with the handle @writeriowa wrote. ‘I walked in, they apologized profusely, and handed me coupons. It’s not the local employees’ fault, so please, be patient and kind. #targetdown.’
‘To my fellow target employees, stay strong in this dark time. #targetdown,’ another user tweeted.
A defect in a network device in June 2014 also caused problems with Target’s payment processing systems, according to media reports.
Target added in their statement: ‘We appreciate all of our store team members who worked quickly to assist guests and thank everyone involved for their patience.’
Concerned shoppers were reassured their details were not at risk during the downtime