A Minnesota Educational Credit Management Corporation (ECMC) that processes loans for students nationwide reported a major theft of personally identifiable information involving 3.3 million students after a break-in at its Oakdale headquarters, according to a Star Tribune article.

Affecting 5% of all students with federal loans in the U.S., the stolen data includes names, addresses, dates of birth and Social Security numbers. No bank account or other financial information was included in the data.

The theft reportedly occurred from a secure location at the ECMC, involving portable media with ECMC student loan borrowers’ personally identifiable information. Congressional sources said the data were stored on discs contained in a safe.

The company is sending letters to affected students with information on fraud protection and identity theft insurance coverage, and has also arranged with Experian to provide affected students with free credit monitoring and protection services.

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