Major Banks and FBI Investigate Hack of Real Estate Finance Vendor

The hack of a technology vendor for real estate financiers has left major American banks and mortgage lenders working to assess whether they were affected by the data breach. The vendor, SitusAMC Group Holdings, LP, announced in a statement on Saturday that someone compromised its systems and took client data, including ‘accounting records and legal agreements.’

The company learned of the intrusion on November 12 and is still assessing the scope and impact of the breach with outside experts and federal law enforcement. SitusAMC stated that it sent letters to customers on Saturday, informing them that the firm is fully operational and that the breach ‘is now contained’ and ‘did not involve encrypting malware.’

JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Citigroup Inc. were among the banks that received such notices, according to two people familiar with the matter. These individuals spoke on condition of anonymity due to the ongoing examination of the breach, which is also being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

Representatives of Citi and Chase declined to comment on whether or how their banks were affected. The breach and the subsequent notices to the banks were first reported by the New York Times.

‘The FBI is aware of a cyber incident involving a third-party provider within the financial services sector,’ according to an FBI statement attributed to Director Kash Patel. ‘While we are working closely with affected organizations and our partners to understand the extent of potential impact, we have identified no operational impact to banking services.’

SitusAMC notified all of its residential mortgage customers that they may be affected but does not yet know the full extent of the breach, another person familiar with the matter said. The company confirmed it was hacked on November 15 and began notifying customers last week, the person added.

SitusAMC CEO Michael Franco stated that the breach is contained. ‘We remain focused on analyzing any potentially affected data and will provide updates directly to our clients as our investigation progresses,’ Franco said in a statement issued through a representative.

This incident highlights the ongoing threat of cyberattacks in the financial sector, where sensitive data is a prime target for malicious actors. Banks and financial institutions must remain vigilant and implement robust security measures to protect their clients' information.