Ongoing issues
The Cache Creek Casino Resort in Northern California remains closed because of a cyber attack. The incident, which was less than two weeks ago, is currently being under investigation.
The casino confirmed on Wednesday that there was a “systems infrastructure failure” due to the external attack. The casino has been closed since September 20 as the property looks to strengthen its internal security. There is no reopening date set, but the casino plans to announce one in the near future.
Attacks like these are significant and can take weeks to research thoroughly.”
Casino owner Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation said in a statement: “We are working closely with independent experts who regularly investigate incidents of this type to determine any risks to data security. Attacks like these are significant and can take weeks to research thoroughly.”
The casino owner went on to state that if the personal info of any workers or guests has been exposed as a result of the attack, the affected individuals will be contacted in writing. With the ongoing closure, ownership is committed to fully paying its staff and continuing their benefits.
A learning experience
The Sacramento Bee cited unnamed sources that claim the FBI is investigating this incident and trying to determine if it was a ransomware attack. The thought is that Cache Creek’s info and network is being held hostage in exchange for a ransom payment.
The casino company noted how these types of attacks have become more and more common in recent years, but underlined that the casino will come back stronger from this experience. The statement said: “We are undaunted in our commitment to the security of our organization and the future of our business.”
Other casinos subject to attacks
There have been a number of issues involving cyber attacks at Las Vegas casinos recently.
At the start of the year, the Four Queens Hotel & Casino and Binion’s Gambling Hall in downtown Las Vegas had to close down their slot machines after being victimized by suspected ransomware attacks.
MGM Resorts International had a large data breach in 2019, with the personal information of more than 142 million hotel guests reportedly falling into the possession of hackers. The records were supposedly accessed after the hacker broke into DataViper servers.
Finally, SBTech had to set aside $30m before its recent merger with DraftKings because of an apparent cyber attack that caused outages at more than 50 global online gambling platforms.