Security breach at IHL affecting Office of Financial Aid occurred Monday, not Thursday when IHL made it known

Security breach at IHL affecting Office.

Key points

• District Judge Henry Wingate placed an indefinite injunction against HB 1193 last year.
• John Sewell, Director of Communications for IHL, remarked the agency "became aware of the suspicious activity on Monday, September 7."
• Security breach at IHL affecting Office of Financial Aid occurred Monday, not Thursday when IHL created it known.
• A spokesperson for the University of Southern Mississippi confirmed to Magnolia Tribune that the school was not informed of the security breach until three days afterwards.
• General Atomics confirmed second expansion this year, bringing 125 more jobs to Shannon.

Security breach at IHL affecting Office of Financial Aid occurred Monday, not Thursday when IHL created it known. By: Jeremy Pittari – September 11, 2026. Mississippi IHL (Photo from IHL website).

Notably, a spokesperson for the University of Southern Mississippi confirmed to Magnolia Tribune that the school was not informed of the security breach until three days afterwards.

Notably, a security breach to the Mississippi Institutions of Higher Learning network. It includes the Mississippi Office of Student Financial Aid, occurred earlier this week, but it appears universities were not alerted until days afterwards, Magnolia Tribune has learned.

According to a press release issued by IHL Thursday afternoon, the Office of Student Financial Aid was impacted by the security breach but there were no documented impacts to any individual higher educational institution.

"Southern Miss was notified by IHL staff on Thursday, Sept. 10. There have been no impacts to our operations since of the incident, " stated Jennifer Rigney, USM's Assistant Director for News and Media Relations, in an emailed response.

Meanwhile, a similar request was submitted to Ole Miss and Mississippi State to learn when authorities at the two largest institutions of higher in the Magnolia State were notified of the breach but spokespersons for both schools have yet to respond.

It remains unclear what information, if any, was accessed in the security breach.

"We are working with external cybersecurity professionals to determine what, if any, confidential or sensitive data may have been accessed or compromised, " Sewell stated in his response to Magnolia Tribune. Sewell remarked updates will be provided "as they become available."

For context, a request for information on why there was a delay from the time the breach became known by IHL to the time institutions were alerted received the after response.

"The breach was confined to the IHL office and was not a system-wide incident. We have been working with external cybersecurity professionals since the discovery of the suspicious activity, " Sewell stated Friday afternoon.

According to IHL Thursday afternoon, applications for student financial aid can still be submitted securely through the Mississippi Aid Application (MAAPP) portal on the Office of Student Financial Aid website.

"Our priority is to return our systems to full functionality as quickly as possible, " the IHL release stated Thursday.

Editor's note: This story has been updated to clarify the breach occurred on the IHL's network. It includes the Office of Financial Aid. It additionally includes IHL's response as to why there was a delay in alerting the state's institutions. Regarding the Author(s).

Jeremy Pittari is a lifelong resident of the Gulf Coast. Born and raised in Slidell, La., he moved to South Mississippi in the early 90s. Jeremy earned an associate in arts from Pearl River Community College and went on to attend the University of Southern Mississippi, where he earned a bachelor's of arts in journalism. A week after Hurricane Katrina, he began an internship as a reporter with the community newspaper in Pearl River County. After graduation, he accepted a full-time position at that news outlet where he covered the recovery process post Katrina in Pearl River and Hancock Counties. For almost 17 years he wrote concerning local administration, education, law enforcement, crime, business and a variety of other topics. Email Jeremy: [email protected].

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In short, security breach at IHL affecting Office of Financial Aid occurred Monday, not is the central thread here, and readers can expect follow-up reporting as the picture becomes clearer.