The group of hackers alleged to have broken into the networks of a string of companies, including TJX, Hannaford and Heartland Payment Systems, were in no hurry once they worked their way into the companies systems. They had plenty of time to do their dirty work, in some cases sitting inside the networks and stealing data for as long as a year. Albert Gonzalez reached a plea agreement recently with prosecutors in Massachusetts and New York on the charges related to the TJX attack and others.
Source: https://threatpost.com/how-tjx-and-heartland-hackers-worked-090309/73024/