Las Vegas Strip casino searching rooms daily, cites ‘hacking convention’

A Las Vegas Strip hotel-casino is telling hotel guests to expect room inspections this week.

Resorts World is conducting daily “scheduled, brief visual and non-intrusive” inspections in response to a “well-known hacking convention” in town.

There are two cyberconferences in Las Vegas over the next several days. The Black Hat USA convention is at Mandalay Bay until Thursday. Def Con 32, the longest-running hacking conference in the United States, begins Thursday and runs until Sunday at the Las Vegas Convention Center.

Resorts World said the inspections began Monday and will continue for the entire week.

In 2023, the two largest casino operators on the Las Vegas Strip were the targets of cybersecurity breaches. MGM Resorts International and Caesars Entertainment reported the incidents to federal authorities in the fall, with the latter paying a multimillion-dollar ransom.

Resorts World said that its actions are “in light of recent events in Las Vegas, and the increasing ransomware threats to casinos and hotels on the Strip,” and that the hotel-casino is “dedicated at all times to ensuring a safe, secure, and comfortable environment for all of our valued guests.”

“These inspections are a standard practice in many of Las Vegas’ premiere hotels, particularly during periods of increased foreseeable risk, where vigilance is critical. These inspections are a precautionary measure intended to enhance our on-site security presence (both physical security and cybersecurity), maintain the integrity of our property’s services, and safeguard our guests, business partners, and staff against potential cyberattack threats,” the casino said in a statement.

Hotel room inspections in Las Vegas have become more commonplace after the Route 91 Harvest festival shooting in 2017.

Resorts World said its inspections will be done with the “highest respect for our guests’ privacy and convenience, following strict protocols to ensure minimal disruption to their stay.”

A letter distributed to hotel guests said that rooms with a privacy/do not disturb sign will still be subject to daily inspections.

In September, MGM and Caesars filed reports with the Securities and Exchange Commission acknowledging that each was the target of a cybersecurity attack. The breaches exposed the personal information of thousands of customers, according to the filings.

Casino and hotel operations at Caesars and MGM properties — in Las Vegas and regional locations managed by the two companies — were impacted by the digital attacks. Caesars resumed normal operations within a few days after reportedly paying a $15 million ransom. MGM elected not to pay a ransom, resulting in some systems, such as the player rewards program, being inaccessible for an extended period.

The two gaming companies are involved in multiple lawsuits related to the cybersecurity breaches.

MGM was also the target of a cyberattack in 2019, in which customer information was stolen.

Black Hat USA and Def Con — largely attended by cybersecurity experts, government officials, academics and corporate leaders — each held their respective annual conferences in Las Vegas in August of last year. Authorities have not suggested any connection between the conventions and the reported attacks on MGM and Caesars.

David Danzis can be contacted at ddanzis@reviewjournal.com. Follow David on X at AC_Danzis.