● Covered by 2 sources · 2 reportsMedium impact2 negative
Florida financial aid site breach exposes 4.9 million Social Security numbers
Key points
- 4.9 million people affected by the breach.
- Social Security numbers, addresses, and other data exposed.
- Florida Student Financial Aid website taken offline.
- FLDOE is investigating with state law enforcement.
- The FLDOE discovered the intrusion on October 19.
- Compromised data includes dates of birth, phone numbers, email addresses, and gender codes.
Financial Aid Site Compromised
The Florida Department of Education (FLDOE) announced a data breach affecting its Florida Student Financial Aid website. The department became aware of the incident on October 19. The breach exposed sensitive personal information belonging to approximately 4.9 million individuals who had applied for financial aid in the state.
Exposed Data and Response
Information compromised in the breach includes names, addresses, phone numbers, genders, email addresses, Social Security numbers, and dates of birth. FLDOE stated that an unauthorized party gained access to a system or database containing this information. The department has partnered with the Florida Digital Service and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement in its response. The financial aid site has been taken down, and other department websites may experience temporary disruptions.
Impact on Students and Broader Context
FLDOE confirmed that financial aid for students is not at risk, and the breach will not delay aid disbursements, tuition payments, scholarships, grants, or student loans. Affected individuals are urged to monitor their credit reports and financial accounts for unusual activity. This incident follows a recent breach at California’s education department and is the second large Florida government breach this year, after the Department of Motor Vehicles reported a breach last month.
Updates
- The FLDOE discovered the intrusion on October 19.
- Compromised data includes dates of birth, phone numbers, email addresses, and gender codes.
✨ This summary was generated by AI from the outlets' reporting listed below. It is not independently verified and may contain errors — check the original sources. How BrevFeed works →
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How outlets covered it
The Florida Department of Education (FLDOE) reported a data breach on its student financial aid website, potentially exposing personal information for approximately 4.9 million people. The compromised data includes names, Social Security numbers, dates of birth, and contact information, though the department states existing aid disbursements and eligibility are unaffected.
Florida's Department of Education (FLDOE) reported a data breach on its Student Financial Aid website, exposing Social Security numbers and other personal information for 4.9 million individuals. The department has taken the site offline and is investigating the incident, advising affected individuals to monitor their credit.