- Lucky Star Casinos temporarily closed due to ransomware attacks.
- The extent of the data breach’s effect on consumers still unknown.
- Online casinos appearing to be a more viable option for U.S. gamers.
The Lucky Star Casino chain in Oklahoma is undergoing some serious conversations about cybersecurity amidst a recent ransomware attack that has kept all six of its casinos closed since the 18th.
This cyberattack marks the first targeted at major retail casinos this year, but the practice has been ongoing with few details regarding the identity of the perpetrators or the kind of information that they were able to obtain.
In October of 2020, three casinos located in both Idaho and California were subjects of such attacks. While the venues reopened their doors quickly, the extent of damages to the casinos and their players is unclear.
Why Target Casinos?
Because casinos obtain so much sensitive information and maintain their records on various platforms, they are prime targets for cyberattacks. Furthermore, these casinos are legally bound to cooperate with hackers due to the various U.S. laws and regulations protecting consumer payout and insurance agencies.
The FBI is currently investigating all of these attacks, but that alone won’t offer casino players a sense of security. These federal probes are often extensive due to the complexities undergone to even follow through with such an attack.
Many of these attacks aren’t based out of the U.S. This, in turn, makes it exponentially harder to impose web-based safeguards to protect these businesses.
Ransomware and cyber-attacks are not new and are only growing in popularity. While retail casino owners can do their very best to keep up with cybersecurity, there isn’t much that consumers can preemptively do to protect their sensitive data.
Offshore, Online, & Already Encrypted
This is yet another reason for players to opt for offshore trusted online casinos.
While playing entirely online may seem counterintuitive to the notion of protecting oneself against data breaches, it makes sense. Legal online casinos that operate offshore are solely concerned with the status of their online operations. For this reason, their data security is generally superior to that of retail casino chains.
Offshore online casinos are typically protected with cutting-edge SSL/TLS encryption. This method of data guarding takes additional measures to protect user and operator data by simultaneously encrypting server connections and data exchanges during the session.
Moreover, housing these servers offshore means that the operators have no legal obligation to cooperate with hackers. Most of these online venues would typically respond with a “take the money and run” approach, which ultimately protects consumer data over consumer payout.
This is more valuable in the long run as short-term gains cannot compare to the unbridled anguish of having to deal with identity theft.
While the land-based casino environment can be exciting, it is also important to remain vigilant and protect one’s data best they can. With offshore options ranging from mobile slot machines to fully-fledged digital casinos, there’s no better time to start playing online.