Federal Student Lender Loses Data on 3.3 Million Borrowers -- Campus Technology

Cybersecurity

Federal Student Lender Loses Data on 3.3 Million Borrowers

By Dian Schaffhauser
04/08/10

A non-profit organization that guarantees federal student loans was a victim of portable media theft during March, potentially affecting 3.3 million people whose personal information was on the media.

Educational Credit Management Corp. (ECMC) said the theft occurred at its headquarters in St. Paul, MN sometime during the weekend of March 20-21, 2010. The stolen data contained names, addresses, dates of birth, and Social Security numbers of borrowers, but no bank account or other financial account information. Company representatives said they're not aware of any instances in which the data has been misused.

ECMC discovered the theft on the afternoon of Sunday, March 21 and contacted law enforcement. The organization, which said it has guaranteed $11 billion worth of student loans, is working with local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies in the investigation.

The organization said affected individuals would receive a letter containing information about how to sign up for free credit monitoring and notification, get assistance from ECMC fraud resolution representatives, and be provided with identity theft insurance coverage.

"We deeply regret that this incident occurred and the stress it has caused our borrowers and our partners and are doing everything we can to help protect our borrowers' identity and personal information," said Richard Boyle, president and CEO.

About the Author

Dian Schaffhauser is a former senior contributing editor for 1105 Media's education publications THE Journal, Campus Technology and Spaces4Learning.

E-Mail this page

Printable Format

Featured

George Fox University Expands STEM Learning Resources for Students Through Numerade Partnership

In an effort to boost student success in STEM subjects, Oregon's George Fox University has partnered with STEM learning platform Numerade to offer students free access to the company's video tutoring platform.
Call for Speakers Now Open for Tech Tactics in Education: Thriving in the Age of AI

The annual virtual conference from the producers of Campus Technology and THE Journal will return on May 7, 2025, with a focus on AI, cybersecurity, and student success.
Reports Note Increasing Threat of Nation-State-Sponsored Cyber Attacks

A bevy of new cybersecurity reports point to the continuing problem of nation-state-sponsored threat actors. The primary culprits have long been Russia, China, Iran, and North Korea, which all show up in recently published reports from Microsoft, IBM, Tenable, and Fortinet.
Scalable Cloud Strategies: Values for Higher Education

From a massive, 23-campus cloud-and-security transformation, to a small college's "lift and shift" entry into the public cloud, Unisys Higher Education Strategist Christopher Wessells knows how higher education leverages the cloud. Here, he examines some of the values scalable cloud strategies offer our institutions.