Posted On April 6, 2023 Consumer Privacy & Data Breaches
April 6, 2023 – After discovering a network security incident that allowed unauthorized actors to access confidential consumer data provided to Cornerstone, Cornerstone Home Lending (Cornerstone), which is a division of Cornerstone Capital Bank, filed a notice of data breach with the Attorney General of Montana’s Office on April 3, 2023. According to the company’s report, the breach exposed customers’ names, bank account information, addresses, and loan numbers to an outside entity. After it was determined that customer information had been compromised, Cornerstone immediately began notifying those whose personal information had been compromised.
It is crucial that you know what is at stake if you get a data breach notification. Console & Associates, P.C.’s data breach lawyers that represent victims of data breaches, are currently looking into the Cornerstone Home Lending hack. As part of our inquiry, we offer free consultations to anyone whose information was compromised by Cornerstone and who is concerned about the possibility of identity theft, the steps they can take to protect themselves, and the legal recourse they may have in seeking compensation from the company.
Consumer mortgage lender Cornerstone Home Lending operates as a subsidiary of Cornerstone Capital Bank. Residential mortgages, Federal Housing Administration loans, Veterans Affairs mortgages, jumbo loans, and loans for second homes are just some of the options available from Cornerstone Home Lending. Cornerstone’s headquarters may be in Houston, Texas, but the company has over a hundred branches in 18 other states. Cornerstone Home Lending began in 1988, and today it has grown to employ over 1,950 people and earn almost $2.4 billion annually.
Cornerstone was informed on February 1, 2023, that one of its vendors had been a victim of a security breach citing the company’s filing to the Attorney General of Montana. The vendor inquired into the situation and confirmed that certain Cornerstone patients’ information was accessed by an unauthorized source.
Cornerstone Home Lending initiated its own investigation into the hacked files after learning that sensitive customer data had been shared with an unauthorized third party. Your name, bank account information, address, and loan numbers may have been compromised, albeit the specific information compromised will vary from person to person.
Cornerstone Home Lending notified anyone whose personal information was stolen in the current data security incident by letter on April 3, 2023.
The consumer privacy lawyers at Console & Associates, P.C. help customers affected by data and security breaches pursue legal solutions by offering free consultations. By explaining your rights in clear, concise terms, we help you make an informed decision about your next steps. If you are a victim of the Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare data breach, Console & Associates, P.C. will investigate at no charge to you and offer advice on how to proceed. If you decide to pursue a case, rest assured that we don’t get paid unless you do. If your claim is successful, legal fees are either paid out of the funds recovered or by the defendant. If your claim is not successful, you pay nothing.
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Below is a portion of the letter sent to affected individuals:
Dear [Redacted],
Cornerstone Home Lending is writing to notify you about an incident that may have involved some of your confidential information. This notice explains the incident, measures we have taken in response, and additional steps you can take to protect your information.
What Happened?
On February 1, 2023, we learned that one of our service providers experienced a security incident involving unauthorized intrusion into their network. The vendor reported that they conducted an investigation and determined that certain files containing information from a subset of our borrowers had been accessed. Upon learning of the incident, we conducted our own investigation into the information provided to this service provider by Cornerstone to determine if any personal information was compromised by the incident.
What Information Was Involved?
Our investigation determined that the service provider stored Cornerstone data that includes your name, address, loan number, and bank account number ending in [Redacted].
What You Can Do.
Even though we have no evidence that your personal information has been misused, we wanted to let you know this happened and assure you we take it very seriously. As a precaution, we are offering you a complimentary membership to Experian’s® IdentityWorksSM. This product provides you with identity detection and resolution of identity theft. It is completely free to you and enrolling in this program will not hurt your credit score. For more information on IdentityWorks, including instructions on how to activate your complimentary membership, as well as some additional steps you can take in response, please see the pages that follow this letter. You may want to also consult with your banking institution on additional steps to take, including whether changing your bank account number would be appropriate.
What We Are Doing.
Your confidence and trust are important to us, and we regret any inconvenience or concern this incident may cause. The vendor has informed us that they have implemented several changes that will better protect the data they maintain and are undertaking additional efforts to harden their environment, expand security logging infrastructure, and implement the deployment of additional endpoint and network-based safeguards.
For More Information.
If you have any questions, please call [Redacted], Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Central Time, excluding major U.S. holidays. Please have your membership number ready.
