Appearance set today for nine charged in Obama student loan case

Nine people accused of accessing President Barack Obama's student loan records while employed for a Department of Education contractor in Iowa will appear in federal court today.

The former employees of Vangent Inc. are accused of gaining access to a computer at the contractor's office in Coralville, and accessing Obama's records while he was either a candidate for president, president-elect or president.

They are charged with exceeding authorized computer access. Their initial appearance is today in U.S. District Court in Davenport.

The charge is punishable by up to one year in prison and a fine of up to $100,000.

Authorities have not said why they sought access to the records of if the information was used in any way.

-- Associated Press