Venetian Casino Says Slot Machines' Shutdown Not Due to Cyberattack
A recent incident involving over 50 malfunctioning slot machines at The Venetian occurred on Friday and was not caused by a cyberattack, as confirmed by officials at the Vegas strip resort.
Multiple visitors posted on social media around 2:45 p.m. about the issue, with the outage seemingly ending by 4:30 p.m.
The Venetian issued this statement: "Today, we faced a brief interruption of some of our slot machines. This wasn't due to a cyber-threat. We're now restoring the affected machines and helping the guests affected."
The seemingly minor slot outage at The Venetian prompts more concerns given recent cyberattacks affecting both MGM Resorts International and Caesars Entertainment.
KLAS-TV reported that The Venetian staff informed guests that the outages occurred as part of a "system-wide upgrade." One speculation is that they enhanced their security due to the current situation.
A few weeks ago, Caesars paid a ransom after being attacked by ransomware. However, the payment was only half of the $30 million originally demanded. In their SEC filing, Caesars stated that the breach had compromised driver's licenses and Social Security numbers in their loyalty program's database.
MGM Resorts has yet to publicly disclose specifics of the cyberattack they're experiencing. But Moody's believes that revenue losses, lawsuits, and a major hit to its image are possibilities, regardless of the actual damage done by the attack.
An Old Incident, A Different Time
In February 2014, The Venetian experienced a cyberattack when it was under billionaire Sheldon Adelson's ownership.
This attack had no financial goal and was assumed to have been carried out to retaliate against Sands' CEO and its largest investor for his statements at a Yeshiva University panel in October 2013. During that panel, Adelson suggested detonating a nuclear bomb in the Iranian desert if Tehran continued its nuclear program.
Former US Director of National Intelligence, James Clapper, said the Iranian government was responsible for this cyberattack.
Adelson passed away in 2021, and his family sold The Venetian and its sister property, The Palazzo, to Vici Properties. Apollo Global Management presently manages it.
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