When Caesars Entertainment was hit with a major cyber attack last September, company Senior Vice President and chief audit executive Nicole Solaita had a revelation. “Unfortunately I’ve realised that this is really going to be our new norm in this corporate space,” she said in a recent webinar reported on by iGaming Business. Solaita’s moment of clarity can also serve as a warning for other operators whose data is increasingly at risk from cyber criminals bent on blackmail and mayhem.
In the September attack Caesars massive loyalty rewards program database, which includes player information such as drivers license numbers and contact information, was compromised by attackers who demanded a ransom. Though there was no official word on whether or not a ransom was paid, it’s generally believed that the company spent millions of dollars insuring that the information wasn’t turned loose.
While Solaita didn’t blame any specific Caesars employees for the breach, she did mention that “social engineering” (phishing) was a major issue for businesses with regards to data security saying, “It comes back to social engineering and you [can] find yourself frustrated because, although you train folks, for whatever reason I think some of that is fleeting and when they find themselves in the moment and they get a call, a request or an instruction, some of that critical thinking is not so instinctive and they just go on autopilot.”
Solaita and the other panelists all agreed that the gaming industry needs to put more effort into protecting against cyber theft concluding, “We’re going to have to really put all our efforts into this education space and really making sure everyone understands the risks and how we can be diligent at all times.”