Tag Archive for: casino

Rivers Casino says computer system was hacked and customer data accessed


Computer files containing personal information of gamblers and employees at Rivers Casino in Des Plaines as well as online sportsbook customers may have been accessed by hackers, the casino announced Thursday.

The data breach occurred in August and was discovered Nov. 2, according to a news release from Rivers.

The accessed information included names, phone numbers, email addresses, mailing addresses, birth dates and driver’s license and ID numbers, Rivers said.

Some customers’ and employees’ Social Security numbers, tax ID numbers, bank account numbers and passport numbers also were accessed, according to the release.

Casino officials don’t believe customer passwords or payment card information were affected.

“Upon learning of the incident, Rivers promptly took steps to contain the threat and secure our systems, avoiding any interruption to our operations or in the services we provide to our customers,” Rivers said in the release.

A Rivers spokesman declined to say how many accounts might have been accessed.

No evidence of financial fraud or identity theft resulting from the breach has been discovered, Rivers said. Casino operations weren’t affected by the computer attack.


        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        

 

Rivers has created a response center to provide more information about the breach and customer options. To get help, call (866) 983-3108 on weekdays between 8 a.m. and 5:30 p.m.

People concerned about the hack also can sign up for fraud alerts or security freezes by contacting the major credit bureaus…

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New York State Gaming Commission Is Latest Casino Hacking Target


First casinos, and now the regulators. It’s been a tough couple of months for cyber security teams in the casino industry. That continued over the weekend at the New York State Gaming Commission.

The state’s casino regulator was hacked, bringing some grief not just to the gaming commission, but also for some New York slot venues. The commission’s slot management system was left inoperable for a time on Oct. 17, affecting some operators.

“Everi, the licensed operator of New York’s video lottery gaming central system, experienced a cybersecurity event that remains under investigation,” commission representative Brad Maione told the New York Post. “The commission has no indication that personal identifiable information was compromised. The Commission continues to monitor the situation.”

Latest Casino Industry Entity Victimized by Cyber Attack

MGM Resorts was recently victimized in a cyber attack that crippled many of the company’s operations around the country, including slot machines. In Canada, Gateway Casinos experienced a similar issue in April, leading to the closure of several casinos north of the border.

Caesars Entertainment also saw a similar ransomware attack as well. That company chose instead to pay a $30 million ransom to regain access to its computer systems, according to the Wall Street Journal. That may have been the best financial decision, given MGM recent disclosure that the hack will cost the company upwards of $100 million before insurance payouts.

New York State Gaming Commission representatives don’t believe any personal data was retrieved by hackers during the Empire State attack. The commission continues to investigate, but the attack has been another wake-up call for some in the industry.

“We shut down for a brief period,” James Featherstonhaugh, a part owner of Saratoga Casino, told the Post. “It got cleared up fairly quickly. It was all the same issue. It got everyone’s attention.”

Prevention Steps

Cyber crimes have cost MGM, Caesars, and Gateway millions of dollars in lost revenue and additional IT work. As the industry faces a growing number of cyber security issues, some experts say additional planning and training could…

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Casino giant Caesars sends breach notifications to thousands • The Register


As more details emerge from September’s Las Vegas casino cyberattacks, Caesars Entertainment – the owner of Caesars Palace – has disclosed more than 41,000 Maine residents alone had their info stolen by a ransomware gang.

In a Friday filing with the the US state’s Attorney General’s office, Caesars disclosed extortionists siphoned 41,397 Mainers’ data, and listed the total number of victims “TBD.”

The hotel, restaurant, and casino chain described the theft as follows:

The hotel chain’s loyalty program was pillaged and Caesars noted that the stolen personal data included names and driver’s license numbers and/or identification card numbers. According to the filing, the crooks didn’t access customers’ financial information nor payment details.

In an attached security breach notification letter [PDF], Caesars told customers that the entertainment conglomerate has “taken steps to ensure that the stolen data is deleted by the unauthorized actor, although we cannot guarantee this result.”

These steps, we’d assume, including paying the ransom demand – which was reportedly negotiated at $15 million after an initial demand for $30 million.

“To ease any concern you may have, we are offering you complimentary identity theft protection services for two years through IDX, a data breach and recovery services expert,” the notification letter continued. 

“This identity protection service includes two years of credit and dark web monitoring to help detect any misuse of your information, as well as a $1,000,000 insurance reimbursement policy and fully managed identity restoration in the event that you fall victim to identity theft.”

The casino giant first confirmed the data theft in an SEC filing in September, but has yet to comment on the reported ransom paid to the ransomware crew. 

Caesars has not responded to multiple inquiries from The…

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2 Las Vegas casinos fell victim to cyberattacks, shattering the image of impenetrable casino security


AS VEGAS — A persistent error message greeted Dulce Martinez on Monday as she tried to access her casino rewards account to book accommodations for an upcoming business trip.

That’s odd, she thought, then toggled over to Facebook to search for clues about the issue on a group for MGM Resorts International loyalty members. There, she learned that the largest casino owner in Las Vegas had fallen victim to a cybersecurity breach.

Martinez, 45, immediately checked her bank statements for the credit card linked to her loyalty account. Now she was being greeted by four new transactions she did not recognize — charges that she said increased with each transaction, from $9.99 to $46. She canceled the credit card.

Unsettled by the thought of what other information the hackers may have stolen, Martinez, a publicist from Los Angeles, said she signed up for a credit report monitoring program, which will cost her $20 monthly.

“It’s been kind of an issue for me,” she said, “but I’m now monitoring my credit, and now I’m taking these extra steps.”

MGM Resorts said the incident began Sunday, affecting reservations and casino floors in Las Vegas and other states. Videos on social media showed video slot machines that had gone dark. Some customers said their hotel room cards weren’t working. Others said they were canceling their trips this weekend.

The situation entered its sixth day on Friday, with booking capabilities still down and MGM Resorts offering penalty-free room cancelations through Sept. 17. Brian Ahern, a company spokesperson, declined Friday to answer questions from The Associated Press, including what information had been compromised in the breach.

By Thursday, Caesars Entertainment — the largest casino owner in the world — confirmed it, too, had been hit by a cybersecurity attack. The casino giant said its casino and hotel computer operations weren’t disrupted but couldn’t say with certainty that personal information about tens of millions of its customers was secure following the data breach.

The security attacks that triggered an FBI probe shatter a public perception that casino security requires an “Oceans 11”-level effort to defeat…

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