Hackers gain access to millions of Scottrade's accounts

Scotttrade, a brokerage firm known for their $7 commission for online orders, has been hacked. Company officials say that someone illegally gained access to the company's E-secure system which contains names, addresses and social security numbers as well as bank account information. While the breach happened on October 25, customers are only being informed now.

For the last 25 years, Scottrade has offered brokerage services to millions of customers. Customers use the E-secure system to transfer money from banking accounts to the investment account. Active traders will move money often to cover margin calls or transfer profits from successful stock sales.

While the one month lag between the system breech and customer notification may seem too long, companies often extensively investigate these incidents to make sure that there was no false alarm. A few states, including California, have enacted legislation that requires companies to inform customers of data breeches.

Company officials say that they are not sure if the hacker actually stole any of the account information.