Gambling operators should beware as DDoS attacks against gambling companies seem to be ramping up. According to Cloudflare, November and December could prove to be very dangerous months for companies in the sector.

According to the web performance and security company, Q3 saw attacks on gambling companies exceed those on cryptocurrency companies. Such attacks usually target HTTP internet infrastructure, damaging companies’ businesses.   

Cloudflare warned that the total number of DDoS attacks continues to increase, highlighting the need for better security measures. According to the cybersecurity company, it singlehandedly prevented a total of 8.9 trillion HTTP DDoS requests in the third quarter of the year. This figure concerningly represents a 65% quarter-on-quarter increase in the number of attacks.

A total of 5% of the attacks were directed toward gambling companies.

Attacks Are Becoming More Prevalent

Cloudflare noted that the breakthroughs in botting technology allow fraudsters to increase their output and launch more and more attacks every minute. In August, Cloudflare’s network was itself targeted by a huge wave of botnet DDoS attacks.

Many of the attacks seem to originate from the United States, according to official Cloudflare data. According to the company, approximately 36% of L3/4 DDoS attacks were launched from within the US. The second and third places are held by Germany and the United Kingdom where 8% and 5% of the attacks originated, respectively.

While almost half of the attacks were launched from America, Germany and Britain, no country is safe from DDoS attacks. The gambling sector was the main target in Europe, the second biggest target in Asia and Latin America and the third most targeted sector in Africa and the Middle East.

North America and Oceania were the only regions where the gambling industry was not among cybercriminals’ top 3 targets.  

Q3 Saw Three Gambling Giants Suffer Cyberattacks

The damage that cybersecurity threats can cause was recently demonstrated by attacks on several gambling giants. The crypto gaming operator Stake.com suffered one of the worst attacks, causing it to lose tens of millions of dollars in cryptocurrencies.

In America, MGM Resorts and Caesars Entertainment were targeted by cybercriminals. Caesars allegedly paid a ransom. MGM Resorts, meanwhile, struggled with the attack and was forced to temporarily shut down many key systems.

Despite a warning that MGM’s credit score might be lowered, some analysts are very optimistic about the company’s recovery.

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A new report by Microsoft has tied the recent cyber attacks against Caesars Entertainment and MGM Resorts International to a broader hacker collective known as Octo Tempest. The attack was perpetrated by another collective, Scattered Spider, but they have been working with the notorious establishment that has been known for many successful attempts on wealthy individuals’ wealth and assets.

Microsoft Outlines the Octo Tempest Threat to Cybersecurity

The bad actors have used a popular hacking tactic known as social engineering, whereby the hackers obtained enough information to convince relevant parties to be granted access to certain aspects of a company’s operations. For example, a hacker who has the right information and input, can call the information technology department of a company, and request new login credentials. 

This is believed to have been leveraged against Caesars Entertainment and MGM, with Caesars reportedly asked to pay $15 million to regain access to its systems. Microsoft has been following Octo Tempest and the way the hackers ensure that they are successful when socially engineering an attack.

“Building on their initial success, Octo Tempest harnessed their experience and acquired data to progressively advance their motives, targeting, and techniques, adopting an increasingly aggressive approach,” Microsoft noted, adding that Octo Tempest has been able to target more robust organizations with a higher level of security successfully.

Microsoft is not surprised that Octo Tempest has targeted casinos, as there are many reasons to pursue these companies, as they collect vast troves of data through their loyalty programs, and also have credit card data for millions of people. MGM did not budge under the pressure and preferred to rebuild its systems rather than cave in to ransomware demand, following instructions from law enforcement.

Octo Tempest Takes Threats into the Real World

Surprisingly, investors did not react too badly to the news of new hacking against major companies in the United States from the sector. Octo Tempest has been amping up its game as well, using not just social engineering but also scare tactics, such as threatening people with physical violence if they refuse to give up sensitive corporate information. Some people have given in, Microsoft noted.

Reported messages sent to previous targets and victims include threats to send shooters to a person’s house and “shoot up” their families, but also a promise that if a target acquiesced and did Octo Tempest’s bidding, they would be left alone. The New York Gaming Commission was also recently targeted by a cyberattack.

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