Because payment cards with EMV security chips will proliferate within the market this year, experts expect that 2015 will be an active year for breaches. This is because criminals with tried-and-true methods of compromising existing POS systems will attempt to exploit the final window of time when those strategies are effective. 

"It absolutely will be the worst year of fraud because criminals know we are putting bars on the windows with EMV," said Bob Letgers of Fidelity National Information Solutions. "They will exploit that channel as much as they can."

Letgers made his remarks during a panel at the Consumer Bankers Association conference in Orlando, according to the Orlando Sentinel. As the October deadline draws closer, hackers have at least six months left to exploit old systems before many migrate to more secure solutions. As a result, professionals in the field say the last gasps of those hacking methods will become particularly evident this summer. 

Following a spate of high-profile breaches in 2014, new PCI compliance standards and the looming EMV deadline stand to make customer data safer. The rush to compromise existing systems speaks to the hurdles criminals will face to breach more sophisticated security systems. The ten largest financial institutions have announced timelines that will make the majority of their users compatible by the October deadline, and by the end of the year those totals are expected to come close to 100 percent. 

Some merchants have also publicized their timetables for migrating to EMV compliance. In advance of the migration, companies should continuously review their standing payment card processing systems and look out for suspicious or unusual activity. This can minimize the consequences of a breach as hackers grow more desperate to capitalize on vulnerabilities.