Advance Auto says data on 56,000 customers exposed

DETROIT (Reuters) - Advance Auto Parts Inc said on Monday a "network intrusion" had exposed credit card, debit card and checking account information for up to 56,000 customers and was the subject of a criminal investigation.

The auto parts retailer said 14 of its stores, including locations in Georgia, Ohio, Louisiana, Tennessee, Mississippi, Indiana, Virginia and New York, had been affected.

The company said it was conducting its own investigation and cooperating in a criminal probe of the matter by state and federal agencies.

Advance Auto Parts did not specify in a statement how customer financial information had been exposed or how access had been gained to its network.

An Advance Auto Parts spokeswoman said the Roanoke, Virginia-based retailer was not aware of any fraudulent transactions on customer accounts as a result of the breach of its computer network.

Earlier this month, two grocery store chains owned by Belgium-based Delhaize Group SA reported that credit card and debit card numbers had been stolen, resulting in reports of some 1,800 fraudulent purchases.

U.S. retail group TJX Cos Inc disclosed last year that data from 45.7 million credit and debit cards were stolen by hackers over a period of 18 months.

(Reporting by Kevin Krolicki; Editing by Tim Dobbyn and Braden Reddall)