RALEIGH – The U.S. Department of Justice announced Wednesday that computer hackers may have stolen and sold more than 41 million credit and debit card numbers.

Eleven people were indicted in what the federal government believes is the largest hacking and identity theft case ever prosecuted by the Department of Justice.

Prosecutors said the suspects waited in store parking lots, using wireless Internet signals to access customer information through store records.

Once they had the information, agents said they cashed in at ATMs or sold the numbers to others.

That's a scary prospect to consumers like Peg Adamczyk. She shops at BJ's Wholesale club, one of several different stores targeted by hackers.

"You think you're protected, and everything is set up, and there's safety when you use your credit cards, and it's scary," Peg Adamczyk said.

Adamczyk could be just one of more than 40 million cyber victims worldwide.

“The first thought was, 'Oh my God, I hope they haven't gotten anything from us, any information they shouldn't have,' " Adamczyk said.

U.S. Attorney General Michael Mukasey described the case as not only the largest the department has ever prosecuted, but the most complex as well.

"The ingenuity is rather striking," Tom Bartholomy, with the Better Business Bureau, said. "The use of technology -- that's what identity thieves are all about anymore, how to use technology to be as evil as they can be."

Bartholomy urged anyone who recently shopped at these stores to check your account -- fast.

"You contact the credit reporting agencies. See if there is any unusual activity on your account. If there is, you have to immediately follow up on it," Bartholomy said.

However, Bartholomy said he feared the costs from this credit card fraud could reach hundreds of millions of dollars.

And while most of this money could be refunded, he said the scam's costs likely will be passed back to consumers in higher credit card fees.