Washington state's Swinomish casino remains closed after "cybersecurity incident"
An unexplained "cybersecurity incident" has forced the Swinomish Casino in Washington state to close its doors. The gambling company doesn't know when it will reopen.
The shutdown began last Friday and was initially attributed to a "technical" issue. But statements from casinos in Anacortes, Washington, in recent days have made it clear that unspecified network issues were the cause of the closure.
Internet service at the playground is believed to have been affected, Washington state television station KIRO reported.
The casino initially announced it would reopen in a few days. But earlier this week, it became clear that repairs would take longer.
"Our teams are actively working to resolve these issues," the casino said in a statement this week.
We cannot yet estimate when our facilities will reopen. We are working to resume operations as quickly as possible and will provide updates on this website and Facebook page once our systems are back online. "
The casino has hired police and cybersecurity experts to address the issues.
The Swinomish Tribe-operated casino has not disclosed whether any confidential information of the casino or its guests was compromised during the cyber incident.
If we learn that data has been affected by this incident, we will contact the affected individuals as soon as possible," the casino said in a statement.
The closure angered casino visitors. Guests who had booked at the hotel were not initially informed of the closure before arriving, according to an online statement.
"We're from Seattle and drove here to celebrate his (boyfriend's) birthday," one visitor, Haley Cavanaugh, told KIRO.
The drive to the playground took nearly two hours, she said. The casino is about 74 miles north of Seattle.
I’m surprised they closed the door and didn’t say anything,” her friend added.
The closure is limited to casinos and restaurants. The gaming area features more than 700 slot machines. Table games include blackjack, craps, roulette, pai gow and keno.
Hotels and RV parks remain open to visitors with current reservations.
The casino said in a statement that guests "impacted" by the closure will receive refunds "at their discretion."
Public Comments
Many comments regarding the closure were posted on the casino's Facebook page.
Of course, this was a cybersecurity attack. ” said one poster named Trevor Kidd.
"After putting pressure on MGM, I'm surprised that not all casino operations have pivoted to beefing up anti-hacking protocols. The fact that smaller casinos are now being targeted may be a sign that big gaming companies like Boyd, LVS, etc. have gotten smarter Up, cybersecurity has been tightened, and small casinos are now being targeted. Swinomish is not a wealthy company, but is owned by an Indian tribe, which makes things worse."
Previous network incidents
The Swinomish Casino isn't the only casino in Washington state to close due to cybersecurity concerns. In March, the Nisqually Red Wind Casino in Olympia, Washington, closed for two days.
In September, MGM Hotels International suffered a major cyberattack.
Scattered Spiders is a notorious hacking group suspected of carrying out cyberattacks on MGM and Caesars Entertainment. It is unclear whether the same hackers were allegedly involved in the Swinomish Casino incident.
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Source: www.casino.org
