during an interview with cnbc , retailer 's ceo defends four - day delay in notifying customers of security breach as necessary for the investigation and preparation for consumer reaction .
while four days may seem like a long time for consumers to learn their sensitive account information was at risk , steinhafel argued that it was lightning speed from target 's perspective .
the security breach , which yielded the personal information of as many as 110 million customers , was first identified on december 15 , four days before the breach was publicly revealed , ceo gregg steinhafel told cnbc during an interview .
by six o'clock at night , since the security breach was announced on dec. 19 , target chairman and ceo gregg steinhafel is speaking out .
by six o'clock at night , our environment was safe and secure .
 
that was the day we confirmed we had an issue and so our number one priority was ... making our environment safe and secure , " steinhafel said in the interview . "
hackers infected target 's point - of - sale terminals with malware to steal the payment card information from millions of customers , the retailer 's chief executive has confirmed .
that was the day we confirmed we had an issue and so our number one priority was ... making our environment safe and secure .