Consumer complaint received 2025-05-06 00:00:00
Product: Credit reporting or other personal consumer reports — Credit reporting
Issue: Incorrect information on your report — Information belongs to someone else
Company: Nelnet, Inc.
State: OH

Complaint narrative:
XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXXXX/XX/XXXXEmail : [ Insert Preferred Email ] Phone : XXXX Date : [ Insert Date ] To : U.S. Department of Education Office of the Chief Privacy XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, XXXX XX/XX/XXXXXXXX CC : Federal Student Aid | NELNET | Equifax | TransUnion | Experian | XXXX Department of Justice XXXX Consumer Financial Protection Bureau ( CFPB ) Subject : Formal Dispute of Fraudulent Federal Student Loan Accounts, FERPA Violations, Data Breach Liability, and Demand for Immediate Deletion and Monetary Compensation To Whom It May Concern : I am writing to serve formal notice that I,XX/XX/XXXX am the verified victim of identity theft involving a series of fraudulent federal student loan accounts that have been reported under my name by NELNET/Department of Education . My personal information was compromised in numerous large-scale data breaches including XX/XX/XXXXXXXX XXXX and XXXX. These breachesalong with gross negligence by the Department of Education and its contractorshave resulted in fraudulent loans being opened in my name without consent or knowledge. 

I have filed FTC Identity Theft Reports ( Nos. XXXX, XXXX, and XXXX ) and attached them herein as supporting evidence. These reports validate and outline the following false accounts associated with NELNET : Fraudulent NELNET/Dept. of Education Accounts to Be Deleted Immediately : Account # ( last XXXX ) Open Date Balance High Credit FTC ReportXX/XX/XXXXThese accounts are duplicated, inflated, and internally inconsistentviolating multiple sections of the Fair Credit Reporting Act ( FCRA ). The balances differ across reports for the same account number. High credit limits fluctuate without justification, and there is no documentation of signed promissory notes or legitimate consent. These are fraudulent entries that must be purged immediately.

Negligence, FERPA Violations, and Governmental Breach of Duty Further compounding this injustice is the Department of Educations egregious breach of its duty under FERPA ( 20 U.S.C. 1232g ), which guarantees that no personally identifiable information from education records can be disclosed without consent. The very presence of these fraudulent loans indicates a failure to verify the identity of borrowers and an unauthorized disclosure of sensitive educational dataviolating the core tenets of FERPA.

Additionally, recent revelations about Elon Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency ( DOGE ) having access to federal databases raises grave concerns. The U.S. Court of Appeals has already blocked DOGEs access to Social Security data due to likely violations of federal privacy laws. If any part of my education or loan data was accessed, used, or processed by DOGE or XXXX XXXX, that constitutes a direct breach of federal privacy protections, subject to civil and potentially criminal liability. 



Legal Citations and Grounds for Dispute & Relief 15 U.S.C. 1681s-2 ( a ) Prohibits inaccurate or unverifiable information reporting.

15 U.S.C. 1681c-2 Right to block information resulting from identity theft.

15 U.S.C. 1681i ( a ) Mandates reinvestigation of disputed items within 30 days.

15 U.S.C. 1692c ( c ) Requires debt collectors to cease communication upon dispute.

FERPA ( 20 U.S.C. 1232g ) Prohibits unauthorized sharing of educational records.

Engelhardt v. Gravens, 281 S.W. 715 ( Mo. ) Silence in the face of a challenge implies the debt is not valid.

Demand for Monetary Damages & Redress Due to this prolonged exposure to identity theft, psychological distress, time expended to resolve these fraudulent debts, and damage to my financial reputation, I am seeking monetary damages in the amount of {$75000.00}, as permitted under FCRA ( 15 U.S.C. 1681n and 1681o ) for willful and negligent noncompliance.

This amount reflects : Punitive damages for negligent supervision and breach of federal duty Costs associated with credit repair, legal consultations, and lost credit opportunities Emotional and reputational harm caused by being wrongfully linked to federal student debt Immediate Action Requested : 1. Permanent deletion of all fraudulent NELNET accounts listed above from Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion credit files.

2. A complete internal audit and disclosure of who accessed or approved these accounts.

3. Written confirmation of deletion within 30 days per 15 U.S.C. 1681i.

4. Referral to the Department of Justice for any criminal breaches.

5. Initiation of settlement discussions for compensatory and punitive damages.

If no adequate response is provided within the statutory time frame, I will pursue a complaint through the CFPB, the U.S. Department of Education Inspector General, and, if necessary, initiate a civil suit in federal court. 

Sincerely, XXXX XXXX XXXX Without Prejudice

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation