DALLAS — On The Border Grill & Cantina is grappling with a potential cybersecurity incident.
The Dallas-based Mexican restaurant chain said the company is investigating a security incident that involves a payment processing system that’s used at some of its restaurants. On Nov. 14, it determined some card information was accessed through malware, it said in a statement Tuesday.
“Our company has retained a leading forensics firm and is conducting an investigation to determine the extent to which information in On The Border's system has been impacted,” it said in the release. “We are cooperating with law enforcement and have also notified payment card networks of the investigation.”
Companies are facing rising challenges around cybersecurity as hackers get more aggressive and cunning with their attacks. Last year, the number of overall business detections of malware rose 79 percent, according to a report by Malwarebytes.
Another restaurant chain with ties to North Texas, Chili’s, warned customers of a possible breach last year. The company, which is owned by Dallas’ Brinker International Inc. (NYSE: EAT), said payment card information was accessed or acquired.
On The Border has more than 150 restaurants in 32 states, Puerto Rico and Asia, as of last year.
The security incident may have involved payment cards processed at some restaurants between April 10 and Aug. 10, it said. Not all On The Border restaurants were affected.
The incident involved restaurants in more than 25 states, including Texas, New York, and Oklahoma.
The attack affected credit card information, and that could include names, card numbers, expiration dates, and verification codes. The company immediately went to work to fix the issue after learning about it, On The Border said.
“We regularly update and strengthen our systems and processes to help prevent unauthorized access,” it said on its website. “As part of our ongoing commitment to protecting guest information and privacy, we are working with leading partners in cybersecurity to strengthen and enhance the security of our systems as we go forward.”
