A Ransomware Attack Leads to the Closure of Six Lucky Star Casinos

Oklahoma braced a ransomware attack that was perpetrated to block out the networks for information technology. This led to the closure of the Lucky Star Casinos across all six locations. Lucky Star boasts of casinos that pan across Concho, Canton, Clinton, and Watonga. The ownership and operations being under the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes of Oklahoma. The travel centers across Hammon and Concho also have a unique addition in terms of featuring gaming parlors. The last weekend saw the unexpected closure of the venues owing to cyberattack, as corroborated by the tribes. The matter is in the hands of the FBI while Lucky Star is coordinating with the federal law enforcement agencies to settle on a plan of action. The next twelve months will see credit monitoring services being provided to the casino by the insuring agency. 

Ransom yet to be specified

Lucky Star has stayed mum on specifying whether the ones responsible for the cyberattack have demanded any ransom. The tribal casino is at the helm of the recent string of intrusion directed at the resorts that are Native American. The past week saw Wisconsin’s Menominee Casino Resort in the headlines for being a victim of a similar attack that led to its closure. Northern California’s Cache Creek Casino Resort is included in the list as well for being a cyberattack victim. The October event last year had the casino shut down for a good three weeks. A tribal casino in Idaho followed by Lewiston’s Clearwater River Casino and Lodge and Kamiah’s It’se Ye-Ye Casino met the same fate last October. An online attack led to a ten-day closure. The Nez Perce Tribe headed the operations and owned the casinos in Idaho. 

The most nefarious hacking came into the picture in 2014 that sent chills across the gaming industry globally. The attack was a form of retaliation by the hackers of Iran that was directed at Sheldon Adelson, a billionaire. This was mainly due to his pro-Israel actions that cost the casino owner a good $ 40 million. The hack cracked open and infiltrated the IT network of the Las Vegas Sands. The government of the U.S. later confirmed Iran carried out the attack. 

Decoding Ransomware

Ransomware has been a cause of concern for several small to large companies over the years. Some of the major cyberattacks have led to a growing sense of awareness concerning the significance of cybersecurity. One of the biggest events includes the shut-off for Colonial Pipeline, which cost the company a whopping 4.4 million dollars as a ransom paid out in bitcoins. Ransomware can be defined as a typical malware that corrodes and encrypts a device constituting files. It makes files stored within systems to be rendered unusable. Wherein the systems are heavily reliant on the files to run. A ransom is demanded to decrypt the malware, as stated by the U.S. Cybersecurity agencies.