MGM Resorts are getting back to normal after a devastating cyber attack severely impacted operations at its properties across the United States. Company officials say that the companies hotels are “operating normally” – which is mostly true. Some key components of casino resort life, such as ATMs and digital door keys, are not actually back to normal.
Sometime on September 11, hackers hit the company with a huge attack that wreaked havoc on everything from slot machines to reservation systems and everything in between. MGM guests were forced to wait in hours-long check-in lines that frequently ended with a hand-written receipt and an analog hotel key. Once they ran that gauntlet, guests were free to find out how many other parts of their vacations had been ruined by the attack.
Yesterday, MGM Resorts officials posted a notice on their website saying, “We are pleased that all of our hotels and casinos are operating normally. Our amazing employees are ready to help guests with any intermittent issues. We thank you for your patience and look forward to welcoming you soon.” Company officials did acknowledge that some ATMs were not working and that guests may still encounter issues with some slot machines.
A hacker group called Scattered Spider claimed responsibility for the attack and are believed to be the same group that attacked Caesars Entertainment that same week. It’s believed that Caesars paid some amount of ransom to the group after it threatened to release personal customer data.
The fact that hackers could breach casino/resort computer systems that are presumably among the best available is a chilling thought for gaming operators of all stripes. If Caesars Entertainment and MGM Resorts are hit this hard, that means operators across the spectrum are extremely vulnerable.