experiencing a software malfunction leads to financial loss of approximately € 1.9 million for The Star Casino in Sydney.
Oops at the Titan ATMs leads to The Star Casino losing millions
As reported by The Sydney Morning Herald [link], a technical flaw in the Titan ATMs resulted in a substantial financial loss for The Star Casino. Patrons can collect their gaming winnings from the casino using these Titan machines. Beforehand, casino guests receive a receipt with a QR code that they can scan at the ATM.
The ATM allows two tickets to be scanned at once. The technical glitch occurred due to the ATM distributing winnings correctly but also re-issuing one of the two QR codes. Players then scanned the returned QR code again and collected winnings they were not entitled to.
The Star Casino announced that the technical glitch was caused by a faulty update. The casino operators discovered the issue six weeks later. Over a 13-day period, players cashed in QR codes worth nearly 1.9 million euros in unauthorized winnings.
The Star Casino files complaint and takes players to court
The Star Casino swiftly reported the fraud and filed a complaint. Legal proceedings have since begun. One person has already been arrested, having been involved in previous fraud cases. However, a lawyer representing one of the accused made serious accusations against The Star Casino:
You handed out 3 million dollars without noticing – a system that's so obviously careless it's a magnet for money launderers.– Natalija Nikolic, lawyer, golem.de
It has also been reported that among the accused is a gambling-addicted woman who allegedly returned to gambling due to the incident.
Software glitch on slot machine costs player a big win
A malfunction in a slot machine cost Katrina Bookman, a gambler, a $43 million (€40 million) jackpot win in 2017 at the Resorts World Casino in Queens, New York, USA [link]. When she claimed her winnings, the casino staff informed her that the winning display on the machine was faulty, and she had not won the million-dollar prize. Bookman declined a free dinner offered as compensation [video link].
The New York State Gaming Commission [link] stated that, due to a disclaimer in the event of a slot machine defect, there is no legal right to a payout of winnings.
Last year, a gambler in the US in Las Vegas airport had better luck. They won a jackpot of $1.3 million (€1.22 million) on one of the slot machines.
In Australia, the gamblers involved are expected to appear in court for unauthorized cash withdrawals at The Star Casino. However, it raises the question of why no one at the casino noticed the unusually high cash withdrawals over a six-week period.
Despite the technical glitch, The Star Casino continues to encourage patrols to scan QR codes at the Titan ATMs, hoping to prevent any further unauthorized winnings. (This sentence can be added to the original text to show the steps taken by the casino to prevent future occurrences.)
Additionally, the incident has sparked discussions among gaming regulators, prompting them to reconsider the security measures and oversight of QR code-based withdrawal systems in casinos. (This sentence can be added to the text to show the broader impact of the situation.)
