So we have to think of limiting the damage. The Caesars hack seems to be an example of using 'ransomware,' a type of software hackers use to hold their victim's data hostage, blocking access until they agree to pay a ransom. The cyberattack against MGM was a high-profile example of what is known as 'vishing' or 'voice phishing,' where hackers impersonate an employee over the phone using publicly available information from sites like LinkedIn. 'Usually that weakness is human-related, like phishing something, social engineering.' 'So when you have really high security, hackers really don't challenge themselves to the high security when there's weakness, that's what they are exploiting,” said Yoohwan Kim, a professor of computer science. The attacks come on the heels of a reported hack of Clorox in August, which caused production delays and shortages on shelves that are still being felt a month later. Soon after, the Wall Street Journal reported that Caesars Entertainment paid roughly $15 million in ransom money to its attackers, who, in exchange, promised not to release stolen customer data.
MGM was hit with sudden outages at casinos, keycard issues for guests at hotels, and even fraudulent credit card charges for rewards members. Recent cyberattacks at MGM Resorts and Caesars Entertainment have been making headlines in the U.S.
