Minnesota Casino Latest Cyberattack Victim, Hackers Continue Targeting Tribes
Posted on: April 3, 2025, 11:59h.
Last updated on: April 3, 2025, 12:07h.
- A tribal casino in Minnesota remains impacted by a cyberattack
- Jackpot Junction’s slots remain unavailable
- The cyberattack’s impact is entering its second week
A Minnesota casino is the latest victim to fall prey to a cyberattack. The tribally owned property’s operations were substantially impacted, with slot machines, bingo games, and online hotel room reservations remaining offline as of Thursday afternoon.
Located in the heart of the Minnesota River Valley, the Lower Sioux Indian Community’s Jackpot Junction Casino Hotel began experiencing technical problems a week ago on Thursday, March 27. Seven days later, the tribal casino’s more than 1,200 slots remain unavailable.
As of April 3, slot machines are currently unavailable. Thank you for your patience and understanding. We will provide updates as they are available,” a statement on the casino’s website said.
Bingo is canceled until further notice, but table games remain in operation. The Circle Bar, Java, and Full Deck restaurants are also open.
Casino.org searched for hotel rooms, but the casino’s online reservation system was unavailable. The casino’s 379-key hotel remains open, though some amenities are suspended like digital room keys.
A spokesperson for Jackpot Junction said the casino has “identified a cybersecurity incident involving unauthorized access to certain systems.” The statement added that the tribe is working with “third-party experts” to resolve the situation.
The Lower Sioux is working as fast as possible to resolve the Jackpot Junction Casino Hotel cyberattack. The casino is among the tribe’s most critical economic components, and each day its slots are offline means lost revenue.
Along with Jackpot Junction, the tribe’s economy is based on providing loans and financing through its entities Dakota Futures Inc. and Dakota Finance Corp. The tribe is also heavily invested in construction materials derived from hemp.
Jackpot Junction Status
The Lower Sioux Indian Community didn’t disclose whether a ransom for the Jackpot Junction’s IT systems to be restored has been demanded.
There has likely been a ransom demand, as the Russia-linked online hacking group going by the name RansomHub took credit for the Jackpot Junction infiltration on a dark web message board.
Located in Morton, the Minnesota casino opened in 1984. It is a roughly two-hour drive southwest of Minneapolis.
Tribal Cyberattacks
Casinos continue to be favored targets of cybercriminals. For several years, hacking groups have successfully impeded sensitive IT systems of tribal and commercial casinos across the country.
The most high-profile events came in September 2023 when an attack on Caesars Entertainment and MGM Resorts took much of the Las Vegas Strip’s casinos and reservation systems offline.
At this week’s Indian Gaming Association, tribes said cybersecurity threats continue to be a challenge. Hackers have learned that infiltrating casinos’ computer systems, which store hordes of data on guests and employees, isn’t all that difficult through so-called “social engineering.”
Social engineering involves a cybercriminal manipulating, influencing, or deceiving a victim to gain access or control of a computer system to steal personal and financial information.
People can be the weakest link,” said Scott Melnick, vice president of gaming security at AGS, a Las Vegas-based gaming equipment manufacturer.
The Sault Tribe’s five Kewadin Casinos in Michigan, Washington State’s Swinomish Casino, Tucson’s Casino del Sol, and the Indigo Sky and Outpost casinos in Oklahoma are among the tribal casinos that have faced cyberattacks since 2024.
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Last Comments ( 3 )
What Isaac said. Take them offline. No AI manipulation of payouts and strategic placement of games. Tribes have no real oversight. I lost a fortune to Tribal casinos. Glad to see them feel what's it's like to get robbed by computers. Their RFP's are garbage relative to any online casino or Vegas casino. If you play enough, it's easy to tell the RFP's and the algos that control them at tribal casinos are absolutely rigged. Casinos cheat. Nobody will care about this story. People hate tribal casinos that much.
Maybe the casino's should disconnect all slots from computer access.... Go back to to the simple ways... You wouldn't need cyber security and players would be more willing to spend money on slots that can not be controlled and accessed by others. What 100% guarantee does a player have that the games are being controlled by in house or others. ??????
The Minnesota incident underscores the need for enhanced cyber security in the gaming industry. Without robust security measures, such attacks can lead to serious financial and reputational losses.