Works Bakery Cafe Deals with Data Breach

The Works Bakery Cafe was packed with Sunday morning customers two days after the company's owner posted a notice on the front counter that a data breach had occurred and that some credit cards and debit cards may have been compromised.

"We've done everything," said Works Bakery Cafe Manager Chris Ranalli. He said the eatery has added more security upgrades to its computer system and made other improvements to guard against any future hacking.

According to Richard French, the founder of The Works Bakery Cafe, a malware program infected the point of sale computer systems at their seven restaurants, which include locations in Concord, Durham, and Keene. He wrote in the notice that while The Works Bakery Cafe does not store credit or debit card information, "we believe that the malware was designed to gather the information from the cards as they were swiped."

French also wrote that credit or debit cards that were used at any of their locations between mid-January and Feb. 1 may be at risk and he advised customers to contact their financial institutions immediately. "Any card you might have used at one of our locations should be cancelled and reissued through your bank," he wrote.

The news about the data breach was first reported on Friday. were working with the NH Attorney General's Consumer Protection and Antitrust Bureau.

In his notice, French also wrote that he feels "heartsick" when he thinks about the inconvenience the data breach is causing some of his customers. But he also assured his patrons the business has already taken measures to guard against future incidents.

"We hope that you will once again feel comfortable using your debit or credit cards at any of our locations," French wrote.

On Sunday morning, Ranalli said most of his customers were taking the data breach notice in stride and continued to pay for their food and beverages with credit and debit cards. But just the idea that someone decided to hack into The Works Bakery Cafe's computer system surprised Ranalli.

"Who would have thought that something like this could have happened just from buying a cup of coffee," he said. "What are they hoping to get?"