The criminals have managed to get hold of the bank car details of people who have shopped in the store since December 2002, and are suing the details to run up debt in the names of millions of innocent people.

CreditExpert – the credit monitoring and identity fraud protection service from Experian – is urging customers who think they may be at risk to get hold of their credit reports as soon a possible, in order to spot any unusual activity on their accounts and put a stop to any potential fraud.

If you think you may be at risk, Experian is offering the following tips:

• Get a copy of your credit report – it lists all your credit accounts and the searches that lenders have made in response to applications for credit, so you’ll easily be able to see if you have been a victim of fraud.

• Check your credit and debit card statements for suspicious transactions.

• Watch out for hoax calls and e-mails – and be especially wary of any communications claiming to be from your bank, card issuer or TK Maxx.

• Don’t panic, if you do find something suspicious in either your card statements or your credit report, contact the relevant organisations, like your bank, immediately.

Get a FREE credit report