Retail's response to Apple Pay and Google Wallet already hacked

If the retailers backing the CurrentC mobile payment system hope to topple NFC-based technology like Apple Pay and Google Wallet, they may need to improve their safeguards for your data. CurrentC is now warning people in its beta program that "unauthorized third parties" (read: hackers) swiped some of their email addresses. While that appears to be the only information at risk, the loss isn't an auspicious sign for a service that's still months away from launch -- especially one that touts privacy and security as "top priorities." It's not clear who's responsible, either, although the platform's architect, the Merchant Customer Exchange, says that it's still investigating the breach. Whatever happened, it's safe to say that the incident underscores one of the main concerns of middleman-based payment systems like CurrentC. Handing sensitive info to in-between providers, no matter how careful they are, leaves you that much more vulnerable to theft.