LoanDepot hit by cyberattack

LoanDepot is the latest mortgage and loan company to fall victim to a cyberattack.

The California-based company confirmed the cyber incident in a regulatory filing on Monday, TechCrunch reported. The company also posted a statement on its website, where it said it was “working diligently to restore normal business operations.”

Details around the incident are sparse, but the company said in its filing that the incident involved “encryption of data,” an indicator of a potential ransomware attack. A company spokesperson didn’t say if there was a ransom demand made to the company.

LoanDepot took some of its systems offline, including customer portals. A message on the company website said recurring automatic payments were still being processed, but others looking to make payments may need to call an agent.

Residential real estate companies have fallen victim to cyberattacks multiple times in recent months.

Mortgage lender Mr. Cooper was forced to temporarily shut down key systems and cut customers off from making mortgage and loan payments after a significant cyberattack in the fall. The breach compromised the personal data of more than 14 million customers and the company incurred a $25 million hit, partially to cover credit monitoring for customers.

In November, hackers breached the systems of Florida-based Fidelity National Financial, leading to delays in closing real estate deals and affecting home sales in places such as Chicago, where subsidiary Chicago Title operates. The title company was offline for a week.

First American Financial, another title company, suffered a cyberattack last month. The Santa Ana-based company was forced to shut down its website and some key systems after at least the second cyberattack.

— Holden Walter-Warner

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