Thousands of California community college students have been left waiting on financial aid checks after unauthorized individuals breached BankMobile, the banking platform that roughly 60 districts across the state use to issue school and federal financial aid and scholarships. The fallout has pushed some students to choose between buying textbooks and putting food on the table, with districts scrambling to switch from direct deposits to paper checks while they sort out what went wrong.
BankMobile told districts that approximately 65,000 student accounts were impacted by unauthorized data changes, that roughly 1,000 accounts were accessed, and that about 400 accounts had financial aid funds stolen outright, according to EdSource. State community college officials have traced the vulnerability to a change BankMobile made to its account verification process in July 2026, which they say was exploited to hijack and modify student account information. The California Community Colleges Chancellor's Office advised districts this month to halt electronic payments through BankMobile altogether.
Los Rios Community College District said in a letter that unauthorized individuals gained access to a significant number of BankMobile student accounts, but added that all available evidence indicates that Los Rios systems and data remain secure, according to Sac City Express. The district bypassed BankMobile entirely for a Friday disbursement, issuing paper checks directly to students, and said it is evaluating all available options for the next scheduled disbursement. Los Rios has since announced it will transition student disbursements and refunds from BankMobile to Nelnet, and may keep issuing paper checks until the new system is fully operational and working effectively and securely. In the meantime, the district has directed students to its basic needs center for help with food, housing, transportation or other essentials if delays continue.
Districts Scramble With Paper Checks
The disruption has played out differently from campus to campus. Butte College issued paper checks for its October 8 disbursements, though officials there said they did not know whether the compromised accounts belonged to their own students, per EdSource's reporting. Long Beach Community College distributed paper checks both in person and by mail, while some districts issued checks and directed students to file claims directly with BankMobile.
Riverside Community College District switched to paper checks on October 8, paying about 3,400 students who normally received direct deposits. John Geraghty, the district's controller, said Riverside felt comfortable resuming direct deposits after BankMobile described enhanced security protocols, and the district returned to its standard process in time for students to receive their latest disbursement on Wednesday, October 28. Students at other campuses were still waiting for their financial aid as of EdSource's report.
Rancho Santiago Community College District, which used BankMobile as its third-party financial aid provider, temporarily suspended direct-deposit financial aid disbursements and switched to mailed checks after being notified by the California Community Colleges on October 1, according to Eldon News. BankMobile told the district it had no indication the cybersecurity matter affected Rancho Santiago, Santa Ana College or Santiago Canyon College, though the district warned that paper-check disbursements wouldn't match its posted disbursement schedules.
Students Caught Between Books And Bills
For Isabella La Rocca, a 21-year-old Santa Rosa Junior College student, the delay has stretched more than a month. EdSource reports that her college's financial aid office told her she could expect her BankMobile disbursement by September 16, but after updating her account and completing new verification, her BankMobile account showed no funds at all. La Rocca relies on financial aid for tuition, transportation and school materials, while using part-time job income to cover her car payment, insurance and rent — and the delay has strained her ability to pay bills amid rising gas prices. She said she has paid out of pocket during the semester for transportation and books she relied on aid to cover. She plans to request a physical check.
At Los Angeles Pierce College, 27-year-old American Sign Language major Julia Ramirez has avoided buying textbooks since the beginning of the semester, even though they start at $64 at her campus. Ramirez, who attends campus nine hours a day from Monday through Thursday, told EdSource she contacted the financial aid office three times, only to be told to check back in two weeks and then again a week after that. Some Pierce College students had not received any communication from the financial aid office beyond an undated announcement that disbursements were temporarily paused due to unforeseen technical difficulties. “They just have you going in circles,” Ramirez said, according to EdSource, adding that the office seemed not to have answers. She said students should not have to choose between food and textbooks, and that she has had to consider whether to buy basic necessities like water and food without her aid. Ramirez plans to use her eventual disbursement for textbooks and food.
A Breach Landing On Already-Strained Students
The timing has compounded financial pressure that was already severe across California's community college system. Students who live off campus spend close to $30,078 per year on necessities including food, housing, transportation, books and supplies, according to the California Community Colleges Chancellor's Office. Roughly 900,000 California Community College students submitted a FAFSA or California Dream Act Application in the 2023-24 academic year, and in that same year 24% received a Pell Grant, 9% received a Cal Grant and 47% received a California College Promise Grant.
Basic-needs insecurity was already widespread before the breach. In 2023, 68% of surveyed California Community College students reported at least one form of basic-needs insecurity, including 47% who faced food insecurity within the previous 30 days, per the Chancellor's Office data. A separate basic needs report found that half of surveyed students worried their food would run out before they could afford more, and one in three skipped meals or ate less than needed because they lacked enough money for food, according to the Community College League of California. The 2025 Real College CA Student Survey, which drew responses from more than 76,000 students across 102 of California's 116 community colleges, found that 46% of students were food insecure and 58% were housing insecure, as reported by Inside Higher Ed.
California isn't alone in facing financial aid system failures this month. In Florida, officials said hackers gained unauthorized access to the state Department of Education's financial aid website on October 19, potentially exposing personally identifiable information including Social Security numbers, according to CBS News Miami. Florida officials stressed that breach would not affect financial aid disbursements, tuition payments or eligibility for scholarships, grants and student loans — a contrast to the disbursement delays now rippling through California's community college system.
