loanDepot is the latest mortgage lender to fall victim to a cyberattack causing disruptions to its system.
The California-based lender, which originated approximately $13.25 billion in mortgage loans over the last 12 months, according to Modex, has initiated an investigation with the assistance of cybersecurity experts.
“loanDepot is experiencing a cyber incident. We have taken certain systems offline and are working diligently to restore normal business operations as quickly as possible," a spokesperson for the company said Monday. "We are working quickly to understand the extent of the incident and taking steps to minimize its impact. The company has retained leading forensics experts to aid in our investigation and is working with law enforcement. We sincerely apologize for any impacts to our customers and we are focused on resolving these matters as soon as possible.”
loanDepot has also begun notifying regulators about the incident, as outlined in an 8k filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), indicating that the earliest event occurred on Jan. 4, 2023.
"Though our investigation is ongoing, at this time, the company has determined that the unauthorized third-party activity included access to certain Company systems and the encryption of data. In response, the Company shut down certain systems and continues to implement measures to secure its business operations, bring systems back online, and respond to the incident," the company told the SEC.
According to social media reports, customers encountered difficulties accessing systems over the weekend. Despite the disruptions, loanDepot assured customers that recurring automatic payments are processing as expected.
Several notable mortgage industry companies have faced cyberattacks in recent months, underscoring the growing cybersecurity challenges in the financial sector. The cyberattack of loanDepot follows recent breaches at First American, Fidelity National Financial, and Mr. Cooper Group.
