A hack on technology services supplier Nelnet Servicing affected more than 2.5 million persons with students with student loan accounts with EdFinancial and the Oklahoma Student Loan Authority.
The provider claims that hackers accessed its systems without authorization in June and continued to do so through July 22. There have been about 2,501,324 people who were affected by the data breach.
The information that was made public includes full name, place of residence, email address, contact details, and social security number.
Hackers can exploit the aforementioned data by employing a number of tricks like phishing, social engineering, impersonation, and other tactics. The danger of exposure is amplified because loans are such a delicate subject.
Nelnet informed Edfinancial and OSLA that the attackers initially gained access by taking advantage of a vulnerability in its systems.
Nelnet claims to have stopped the hack as soon as the security vulnerability was discovered, but a later review, which was finished on August 17, 2022, found that some student loan account registration data may have been obtained.
Customers who might be impacted have already been informed by EdFinancial and OSLA, although EdFinancial made it clear that not all of its clients are affected as Nelnet Servicing is not its only technology supplier.
It has been suggested that people use the free identity theft protection services offered by EdFinancial and OSLA if their data may have been affected by the event. Furthermore, due to the data breach, the provider of technical services could be subject to a class action lawsuit.
The law firm "Markovits, Stock & DeMarco" yesterday began an inquiry into the possibility of a class action lawsuit due to the magnitude of this data breach occurrence.
According to a letter sent to impacted borrowers, "we urge you to be alert against incidences of identity theft and fraud over the following 24 months, by examining your account statements and keeping an eye on your free credit reports for suspicious activity and to spot errors."
It is advised that those who receive the notices sign up for Experian's IdentityWorks service right once to shield themselves from fraud, and they should also keep a watch for any other incoming correspondence.
