Hacking a POS System Click through for a step-by-step analysis of how a hacker goes about breaching a point-of-sale (POS) system, as identified by Russ Spitler, vice president of product management at AlienVault. Launch a Broad-Based Attack Launch a broad-based attack against a known vulnerability using a watering hole.

Payment card data is encrypted end-to-end and is only decrypted in the random-access memory (RAM) of the device while the payment is processing. A POS malware attack enters through compromised or weakly secured systems and scrapes the RAM to find payment card data, which is then sent unencrypted to the hacker.

McAfee consultant Robert Siciliano says coders, programmers and criminal hackers know how to access dedicated ports used for remote servicing: "ATMs, POS and just about everything connected to the Internet." Anyone with inside knowledge of payments can easily hack a POS system.

One of the most common methods hackers use for acquiring access to internal POS systems is with the use of malware software programs that secretly exploit vulnerabilities on business computers and gather data such as credit card numbers, account details, and other types of sensitive information.

POS machines are very helpful in the retail industry, and when hackers get access to it, both the retailer and the buyer are at risk. Since the market for stolen credit cards still exists, cybercriminals will continue targeting more POS systems. Most of these hackers target getting more databases and leakage from millions of people.