captions paid for by on the broadcast tonight -- hack attack. the biggest case of identity theft in u.s. history. more than 100 million credit and debit card numbers may have been stolen. second opinion. the president wages options on health care reform is a compromise in the works and what does it mean? the states in change. hundreds of women are on the ballot in afghanistan. standing up for rights where women have few. rock of ages. returning to a place attorney by war and ethnic hatred, u2 shows the healing power of music. and also tonight, if you think binge drinking is just a problem for the young people, think again. "nightly news" begins now. captions paid for by nbc-universal television a

good evening. in for brian williams, i'm ann curry. and tonight we begin with what the justice department calls the biggest case of hacking and identity theft in u.s. history. federal prosecutors believe a record-breaking 130 million credit and debit card numbers have been stolen by one man now in custody with the help of at least two others still at large. and while the government says this is an international case, the victims are ordinary shoppers in grocery stores, department stores and convenience stores. nbc's tom costello is following these late-breaking developments from washington. tom? >> reporter: ann, good evening. the government says 28-year-old albert gonzales and two others who are thought to be in or near russia used sophisticated techniques to get around network firewalls and steal those debit and credit card numbers from major retailers and other financial institutions. the hacking began back in october 2007. among the victims are heartland payment systems, the 7-eleven convenience store chain and hannaford brothers grocery store

chain. the justice department said albert gonzales and his accomplices sent the stole an financial data to computer servers in california, illinois and overseas to lat ve yoo, the netherlands and ukraine with attempt to sell the data. interestingly in 2004, gonzales worked as a government informant. that led to arrest of 28 suspects with a credit card fraud case but the government later learned he was also feeding information to criminals and the feds say he's an old pro at this. he's already in federal custody charged in may of '08 with hacking into cash register terminals run by the restaurant chain dave & busters and a year ago of saling 48 million credit cards from eight other retailers including tv max and office max and dsw. at the time that was thought to be the biggest hacking case ever, in which the suspects allegedly sat outside storrs with a laptop computer and hacked into retailers with vulnerable wi-fi access, capturing credit card numbers. restaurants, we're told, are

often most vulnerable because they don't update their protection. gonzales now faces life in prison on those charges and another 20 years in prison on this new charge and a $500,000 fine if convicted of these new charges. ann? >> all right, tom costello in washington tonight. thanks a lot for your reporting on this breaking story tonight. president obama returned to washington late today. the president and his family are back at the white house tonight after a trip out west. and there are signs he is now considering a compromise on health care reform. chief white house correspondent chuck todd was with the president today and has our report now from phoenix. chuck? >> reporter: good evening, ann. the president wrapped up his western working vacation with a final speech to the veterans of foreign wars. but on a day when health care wasn't supposed to be the dominant topic, it was. >> what do we want? health care! >> when do we want it? >> now! >> reporter: another day, another health care demonstration. this time in downtown phoenix. the scene was reminiscent of other politically charged settings greeting president obama outside town halls last week.

but health care wasn't the main agenda item for the president today. instead, it was a chance to recognize and honor the nation's veterans. >> we can never say it enough, for your service in war and peace, thank you vfw. >> reporter: given the ramped-up public debate over health care, the president sought to reassure the veterans, both young and old, that health care reform will not affect their benefits. >> since there's been so much misinformation out there about health care reform, let me say this, one thing that health care reform won't change is veterans' health care. we're expanding access to your health care, not reducing it. >> reporter: but how the president plans to expand access to health care is up for debate. over the weekend, the white house appeared to signal that one of its signature ideas, a government-run insurance plan known as the public option, is optional. >> public option, whether we have it or we don't have it, is not the entirety of health care reform. this is just one sliver of it. >> and i think what's important is choice and competition, and

i'm convinced at the end of the day the plan will have both of those. but that is not the essential element. >> reporter: privately, the white house has sent signals for months it could live with the idea of an insurance co-opt, which would be government influenced but not run. mr. obama's public declaration drew some fire from his own party. >> if it doesn't have a public option in it, it's really not health care reform. >> reporter: and more political trouble for the president, who still clings to the idea of a bipartisan deal. republican senator chuck grassley admitted he could actually vote against a health care bill he likes. >> well, it isn't a good deal if i can't sell my product to more republicans. >> reporter: and senator grassley's public admission may further upset some democrats who believe president obama has been too quick to cut a deal, particularly on the issue of dropping the public option. >> all right, chuck todd reporting for us from phoenix tonight. as for those health care co-opts we have been hearing about, some lawmakers say they are a good compromise but not everyone is sold on the idea.

what are health care co-opts and how would they work? nbc's kelly o'donnell has tonight's report, "making sense of it all." >> reporter: an alternative to both government-run health insurance and private health care plans is the co-opt, short for cooperative. a co-opt is owned by consumers, its own membership, and runs as a nonprofit. so how would it work for health insurance? new health care co-ops would be formed in states or regions where individuals and small businesses could choose to join and buy health coverage as a group. that's already happening in minnesota, where health partners is the nation's largest health care co-op, with more than 1.2 million members who actually vote for the co-op's management team. >> i think that a lower profit motive and lower administrative costs contribute to more affordable health care. >> reporter: health partners offers members a choice of insurance plan, or they can use the co-op's own medical services. >> we also employ our own doctors, our own nurses, our own

pharmacists who deliver care to our members who choose to come to our own -- our own clinics and our own pharmacies. >> reporter: politically, co-ops are backed by conservative democrats and moderate republicans, who both oppose a new government-run insurance plan. proponents say co-ops could keep premium as forwardable because they would not buy private insurance, and instead would use their membership size to negotiate the best rates with hospitals and doctors directly. but more liberal democrats are against co-ops. they say it would be cheaper and more dependable for the uninsured to choose a government-run plan. and liberals argue that some co-ops have already failed. >> they're too small. they can't compete in the marketplace, and the history is they get squeezed out by the private insurance industry, and they never do help with the price. >> reporter: if co-ops do become part of health care reform, the government could still be involved. taxpayer money could be used to get co-ops up and running. then it would be members' responsibility to pay costs and

pick managers to run health care co-ops not tied to the government or private business. kelly o'donnell, nbc news, washington. on wall street today, stocks plunged in a global sell-off as worries about the u.s. consumers' willingness to spend took center stage. the dow was down 186 points, a 2% loss on the day. an update now on the hurricane season. the first named storm has come and gone. officials canceled all watches and warnings for what was tropical storm ana, which dumped heavy rain in puerto rico. claudette hit the florida panhandle as a tropical storm overnight and continues to weaken as it moves inland. but hurricane bill, the first of the season, is still gaining steam in the atlantic. the good news, it is not an immediate threat to land. this is a showdown week in afghanistan, where thursday is election day. the taliban is threatening violence to intimidate voters. u.s. forces are fighting to prevent that. and aamong the candidates are an

unprecedented number of women, hundreds of them, including two women running for president. more now from our chief foreign correspondent richard engel in kabul. >> reporter: in cab unanimokabu many women still hide behind the all-covering burqa, maria was touching up her makeup before hitting the campaign trail for office. "people here who look down on women who go out in public," she said. i want to change that. so a 26-year-old pop singer spent her live savings to launch a campaign with posters and ads on television. tirana makes public appearances at parks without body guards, despite repeated death threats. "women don't have any freedom in the country," this woman said. only 10% of afghan girls go to primary school. only 13% of women can read. but the greatest injustice to women may be hidden here.

it looks like any school, but the classroom is behind prison bars. and so is the nursery for afghanistan's youngest inmates. the children are locked up with their mothers at kabul's only jail for women. under 24-hour guard, behind rows of razor wire. more than a third of the women here were convicted of the crime of escaping their homes or adultery. each can carry up to a ten-year sentence. but many of the women tell us their adultery was really rape, and that they left their homes to run away from abusive husbands. in the prison's sewing shop, we found thouza and nenine, both 25. nezine was sentenced for five years for running away from her husband, who tried to force her into prostitution. "if i show you my back, you would see how badly i was beaten," she said. "anyone in my position would have left, too."

thouzia showed me her prison cell, where the women are allowed to play with the children. a rare moment of joy. you want to be picked up too? all right. come here. but she has 2 1/2 years left on her sentence for abandoning her 71-year-old husband, who beat her with chains. "of course it is unjust i am here in prison," she says. "i am a woman. i am powerless. i have no rights." candidate tirana hopes to change. i can be a candidate to prove women can be anything they want, she said. in an election that could be a turning point for afghan women. richard engel, nbc news, kabul. when "nightly news" continues on this monday evening, a new report on binge drinking in this country. and it's not just college kids. and later, one of the biggest names in rock. u2 returns to what was a country divided. a fan remembers what the band

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health news tonight. a new study is raising an alarm about americans drinking to excess, and this is not about college students. nbc's chief medical editor dr. nancy snyderman joins us now. nancy, a study reported today in the journal of psychiatry said binge drinkings is prevelent among older americans as well. what were the findings exactly?

>> and binged drinking, defined as having five or more drinks in one sitting was reported in 30 23% of men, 9% of women age 50z to 64 in just the past month. and the profile, i think, is going to surprise a lot of people because the study found that men who binge drink are usually wealthy and unmarried. women reportedly unemployed and more likely to use prescription drugs for nonmedical reasons and sexually transmitted diseases in both groups also a concern. >> so this is very dangerous, i would guess, for the health of older americans? >> it is a concern and it does risk their health because binge drinkers are more likely to use tobacco and other elicit drugs and also we're talking about very risky behaviors that could be dangerous for not only the people drinking but those around them. and then if you add on the normal things that we think about, the normal health effect like liver disease, stroke, neurological damage, high blood pressure and other heart diseases and fortunately, binge drinking takes a toll on the entire body and because it

happens episodically, it's a problem that may be missed by doctors because it's not found in typical screening. so if you're an adult and you find yourself drinking more than two drinks at one sitting, you have to have a very serious conversation with yourself about whether you might be one of these people who's been highlighted in this study. >> all right. dr. nancy snyderman, thank you so much for clarifying all of this for us tonight. a legendary american magazine said today it's expected to enter chapter 11 bankruptcy in order to reduce a huge debt load. "readser's digest" said its bankruptcy filing is being negotiated in advance with creditors and said its operations will continue uninterrupted, with no layoffs expected. when "nightly news" continues tonight -- sasha and malia's excellent adventure out west. ♪ choose one appetizer and two premium entrees. just twenty bucks-every day. and ap or boneless buffalo wings. then two signature entrees, like our seven ounce house sirloin

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the obamas haven't exactly been loading up the station wagon, but for sasha and malia, it's been an opportunity to see the beauty of this country, nevertheless. our report now from nbc's norah o'donnell. >> all right. she'll have a cup or a cone? >> cup. >> cone. >> reporter: president obama ordered up a scoop of fun for his daughters this summer. >> you don't have to make it that big. she's not going to be able to eat all of that. >> reporter: the ice cream store was one of the sweet stops on the obama girls' vacation. >> they had a blast. they always have a blast. >> reporter: this weekend it was all about the great outdoors and america's west. >> here in montana, you've got bears and moose and elk. in washington you just have mostly bull. >> reporter: for 11-year-old malia and 8-year-old sasha, it meant some thrilling whitewater rafting. the first family then toured yellowstone national park and old faithful. >> look at that. that's a geyser there. >> reporter: but perhaps the

most breathtaking moment was standing on the rim of the grand canyon at hoping point, thousands of feet above the colorado river. that's when the president's oldest daughter malia proved what she learned about geology in school. >> very good. >> reporter: naming the rock earned a high-five from her mother and a hug from the president. taken away marine one, and it all seems so sord, this family foursome out west to do something so all american, visiting the national park. still, this getaway is just one of many extraordinary trips this summer for the obama girls. they already logged thousands of miles from paris to moscow to london and even ghana. up next is the island of martha's vineyard, all memories to fill their first summer album as america's first family. norah o'donnell, nbc news, washington. when we come back, a young woman who has seen the worst of

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the band u2 has been together a long time now and over the years has played in all kinds of places, including in severe seve sarajevo, a dozen years ago of fill healing from war. the band was determined to return and make a lasting connection with fans. last year for the first time, u2 returned to the reason this, time in zagreb, and found that the connection was still strong and with one young woman in particular. nbc's martin fletcher has the story. ♪ it's a beautiful day >> reporter: u2 back in the balkans. ♪ beautiful day >> reporter: two soldout concerts in zagreb on the latest world tour. it has special meaning for them. and for a young woman in the audience of 70,000. she'll never forget bono and the band. >> they're my guys. i love them. >> reporter: anna survived the

siege of sarajevo four years under siege by military snipers. your apartment was hit every day? >> every day with bombs. >> reporter: and nobody was hurt? >> no. we just go to the bedroom and just come back. >> reporter: she was 12 then when u2 broadcast interviews with sar avons while they were being shelled during the concerts. >> we will never see many of our friends. they are gone forever. >> reporter: u2 gave us the hope and we became like the center of the attention. >> europe didn't know how respond what was going on at its edge, which was this genocide. and we used our show as an opportunity to broadcast to our audience what was happening. ♪ the night is falling everywhere ♪ ♪ rockets at the front >> reporter: u2 sees their music above all as a great night's rock and more. ♪ >> it all comes down to the thing of the human heart and the

human spirit, and the music is, you know, can thaw the hardest heart. >> yes. >> and keeps the spirit supple. >> i love you. i love them. >> reporter: anna did an anti-war documentary called "miss cere asarajevo," and an an grew to thank u2 herself, which she did when they played in cere av yo two yesars after the war. enemies, serbs, muslims, croats, let u2 thaw their hearts. >> people were singing in time and dancing and shouting and jumping together. u2 music united us. ♪ i want to run ♪ i want to hide >> reporter: the concert was spectacular. anna was delirious. >> will you meet them again tonight? >> hopefully. >> reporter: but little hope in a stadium full of fans. after the show at 1:00 a.m., we

spoke to the band. they were tired but hyped, celebrating edge's birthday rock style. >> his birthday started in poland, and burned down several small towns in france, and then came to zagreb. >> my fellow bandmads actually get great value out of my birthday. ♪ one love >> reporter: it wasn't the birthday boy who got the best friend, it was alma , with a little pull from nbc. >> hi, alma . >> hi! you do recognize me. >> reporter: martin fletcher, nbc news, zagreb, croatia. >> pretty cool. that's our broadcast for this monday evening. in for brian williams, i'm ann curry. and for all of us here at nbc news, thank you and good night. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com