To say, “why not pay the ransom, “is like saying, why not let people shoplift. We all pay the price for those criminals actions as the prices are increased to the rest of us. I think MGM did the right thing by not paying them! I’ve always been an MGM loyalist, never really likes Caesars that much, so this just makes me want to stay with a MGM even more. Plus, I heard Caesars actually paid the ransom… Which doesn’t surprise me
@@tothestars00 since the start of the internet when all the casinos and resorts went to online winnings this has been happening ! The last 10-15yrs the public never hears about it because these properties pay the ransom right away so they don't have this problem. Caesar's had a cyber attack 2 weeks ago and people are just finding out now. Caesar's paid the ransom immediately 30 million. Your hearing about this one at MGM because there was no way to cover it up. Because MGN hasn't paid. There cyber attackers still have control of MGM. But MGM doesn't want you to know that. MGM nay have even already paid them some money. All you people I keep saying this will just keep happening it's already been happening for the last ten or fifteen years you just don't know. 😂
@tammie9147 they've paid 15m, CONFIRMED. Your argument makes no sense. Pay it all or don't pay nothing! This is common sense and I shouldn't have to explain this to you. Losing 2.4 billion a week to save(?) 15m is mind-boggling.
Good stuff! Yep it is a tough situation and I'm set to go to MGM Grand 10/15. I really hope it all is back to some set of normal. Scary! Feel so bad for those that were there and had to put up with that insanity!!
Thanks for the update. I've been following the LV news to try to keep up. It is a tough decision, losing tons of money everyday, but risking losing even more to the scammers by paying and being targeted over and over.
Thanks Marc. My ❤goes out to MGM. I’m not a big IT guy, but I’m like you… I wouldn’t want to pay the hackers as well. MGM will come back better and stronger! Keep us posted. Beautiful background scenery.🌱🌸🌸🌱
@@afveteran True, because they got rid of the IT department and outsource the job overseas, to that Help Desk staff that gave the hackers the link to update the password of the person he was impersonating. Such a steal in cost saving.
The longer this goes on the more insane it is! I truly can’t believe that it’s happening. Such a huge company is still so vulnerable to these people and it’s scary to think of the future. I wonder what’s going to happen. Thank you guys so much for addressing it!!!
Why should it be so insane? MGM literally got rid of their IT department and outsourced the IT support services to some data center in India or Malaysia or the Philippines. Saved a lot of money, just not enough to cover what MGM is forking out now to rebuild the IT infrastructure from the ground up to avoid paying the ransom and not be 100% sure the stolen data will not be leaked or sold on the dark web. Hornbuckle effed up good.
Thanks for the updates. Heading to Vegas on Wednesday for our annual weekly visit but not staying at a hotel. If MGM is still having problems we have lots of other choices for playing slots. We love the lights and 😮😮excitement of the strip and there are lots of things to do besides gambling. We always visit Fremont Street too to see what’s new. Love all your videos and especially playing slots with you and Brantley. Feels like I’m playing too only with bigger bets! Going to use your strategies this visit. Maybe we’ll be lucky! 🤞🤞🤞
I was at MGM casino. All slot machine screens were down, had low staff, and bar screen games on average people had to wait between 1 1/2- 2 1/2 hours to get paid. Said it was like that since Monday
Absolutely agree about visiting the off-the-beaten-path casinos. When I visited Redwood National Park in northern California, I really enjoyed going to the tribal casinos in the evening after spending the day hiking in the park.
I was there from Mon-Fri when this started on Sun. It was crazy with people leaving little bits of money stranding the machines so no one could play until an attendant could “handpay” and switch it back on. It took 40 min to get a jackpot paid in the high limit room. Luxor. All paperwork was in triplicate and by hand each time. The Excalabar was about 45 min in high limit room. Staff was friendly, though! Took a different strategy. I couldn’t cruz machines. I had to stay with my machine till zero or a pay-out. It made me study carefully. ❤😅
You pay a ransom in order to get the hostage released. In this case if they pay the ransom the hostage is not freed. The hackers still have control of their systems. They will just ask for more money later.
This proves how vulnerable we all are depending on the internet. Its time to decouple some how. Or decentralize. If the Internet goes down, the entire economy stops. That's damn scary. No gas, no groceries, no power, no water. Every system is controlled via internet
Our local hospital last month got hacked. It took time to get every thing back in order. They always have a paper backup system going back to the old days when computers did not exist and patient care was not compromised.
Hi... was at Muckleshoot casino in Washington on 9/15/23 and their ATM machines were down and slot machines were not paying out tickets... it was fine when we were there earlier that evening but sometime after 11 pm the machines started acting up...just FYI
I don't know details about social engineering and the AI technology hackers have been using, but the fact that this cyber attack apparently started with information of an IT employee posted on Linkedin, followed by a 10 min phone call, and MGM was down, it's really scary. Retiring in a ranch, in the middle of nowhere, without Internet, growing my own food, with a few chickens, is starting to sound like a great idea.
We are at Aria now. I was supposed to play in a slot tournament, which was cancelled understandably, however, they have to figure this out. Had they alerted me more than 24 hours before we were supposed to fly, we would have changed our plans. People are doing their best but after 3 nights it has gotten very tedious. On another note, I’ve been loyal to aria since it opened but I have to say, post covid, prices are astronomical. A bottle of water from our minibar, $26. A soda at the pool, $10. On top of that, what’s with the restaurant changes?
Arriving tomorrow afternoon.. attending a wedding. Rooms are at the grand. However, wedding and other activities off-site. Hope it goes OK. Not really a gaming trip but would rather have no issues.
You;re absolutely right --- NO RANSOM. Once you give them ransom, those hackers will continue. BTW can MGM ask help from, for example, Starlink, NSA, etc. who are good in detecting cyber hackers?
I’m curious about your visit to Seven Feathers. A bunch of us stayed there for a few days and couldn’t win on ANY slot machine. In fact I noticed no one in the casino was winning. It was very quiet in there and everyone seemed down as they tried to play the slots. Decided to never go back there.
We've actually done very well here - make sure you are playing the right machines as most of the casino floor is filled with high in volatility machines.
@@CowboySlots yes, that could have been an issue. When I was there I hadn’t started watching slot videos yet and learning about the different volatility games yet. But it did feel odd when we walked around the casino floor looking for games to play, unlike other places, we didn’t see anyone else winning either. Weird vibe.
In my dream world, a highly skilled unit is developed to seek and destroy (legally) black hat hackers worldwide. News outlets have reported the hackers that attacked MGM are Russian. There is no way Putin will allow western law enforcement to seek and punish cyber criminals within Russia. Your advice about playing at casinos other that Strip properties is excellent. I play at locals’ casinos that have favorable video poker pay tables. I haven’t been to the Strip since 1992.
Off subject. What were the machines where you dont have to declare taxes on?? Can you explain? Love the way you conduct your vids with detailed instructions 😊
My question is why don’t casinos have a redundancy(disaster recovery) backup systems in place? It’s not like they can’t afford an elaborate backup. system. Worst case they would’ve been down a couple of days. On the flip side I would’ve paid the 200m, definitely upgrade my backup system, then terminate employees responsible for not backing up critical systems.
Already compromised since we have stayed several times at mgm. Not losing my air fare too. Might as well go and make the best of it. Mgm has always treated us fairly. Time to have their back!
It's kind of like giving in to your kid when they're pitching a fit in the store because they want a toy......you give in once and they'll do it every.single.time.🤣
Been in Bellagio since Wednesday, 9/13 and I just checked out today. First 3 days we can only use one master key. Most slot machines doesnt accept the player card and they cannot give me my freeplay, which they told me they will provide in my future visits (they cant compensate the airfare though). I do have resort credits snd unfortunately, the mgm restaurant i went to can’t be charged to the room since there is still “system error” so I have to pay using my credit card. Bellagio said that I can’t use it to offset my resort since I paid it through my credit card. Nothing they can do as their system is still down. What a waste of money to be in their mess!!
So my question is that if the slots have no outside influence then how did these hackers freeze all the screens on the slot machines? I constantly hear you guys saying that it's impossible to do something to the machines without unlocking them but yet this happened 🤔
@CowboySlots I watched the video, I've never missed one yet 👍 This information came straight from the MGM manager on television saying that the hackers froze all the slot machines 🤷♂️
Is it safe to go to Harrahs Vegas? I believe it's a Ceasars property..they got hacked as well. Oct 13 to 15 is my planned Vegas trip staying at Harrahs
They may not be able to legally even if they were interested in paying. If the hackers are on the OFAC list or have been otherwise sanctioned by the US government, paying them would be illegal.
I think Caesars made a grave mistake paying off. Too bad they can't shut down and run Emsisoft Emergency Kit. Then thumb their nose at the scammers. So glad I don't have some giant network.
Paying ransom makes me think of the mob going to different businesses demanding money to allow the business to stay open - yes, I only know about TV. It's my understanding this practice happened in real life. It's my understanding this is nothing new about these hackers. If you pay once, you'll end up being requested to pay again. 😮
The only way to provide tools such as being able to track your points, see your hotel reservations, etc. There has to be a connection between public and private networks. Normally, this stuff isn't accessible, but in the case of MGM - they were social engineered to grant access to the hackers. That was the weak point.
The more dependable we get on technology the more vulnerable we are AI will change the world and it’s already starting,hold on to you’re butts it’s gonna be a bumpy ride
Ok to pit simply normally that be true to not pay but the MGM was so incompetent that they are shut out if their own servers. That hold their back ups same servers. They either pay or redo the whole infrastructure.
Ransom ware is the same as kidnapping. If you capitulate they WILL do it again. The INTERNATIONAL law needs to be boosted to put a stop to it with HARSH penalties.
At all the MGN properties they are not bacj yo and running. So many nachiens are down its not even funny. Theybare not even close to up and running. We were walking around these peoperties Saturday morning
We were set to go 9/30 at Vadra but will hold off to go, just don’t want to be in that mess. Coming from Maui is like leaving one mess into another 🥹😩😂😂🙏
To say, “why not pay the ransom, “is like saying, why not let people shoplift. We all pay the price for those criminals actions as the prices are increased to the rest of us. I think MGM did the right thing by not paying them! I’ve always been an MGM loyalist, never really likes Caesars that much, so this just makes me want to stay with a MGM even more. Plus, I heard Caesars actually paid the ransom… Which doesn’t surprise me
Never pay a ransom! It’ll open the door to have it happen regularly.
I agree with this!
Your wrong this happens all the time in Vegas and you don't hear about it. Caesar's paid right away and they are back up and running !
WRONG
@@vegasone that’s why it happens all the time 🥴
@@tothestars00 since the start of the internet when all the casinos and resorts went to online winnings this has been happening ! The last 10-15yrs the public never hears about it because these properties pay the ransom right away so they don't have this problem. Caesar's had a cyber attack 2 weeks ago and people are just finding out now. Caesar's paid the ransom immediately 30 million. Your hearing about this one at MGM because there was no way to cover it up. Because MGN hasn't paid. There cyber attackers still have control of MGM. But MGM doesn't want you to know that. MGM nay have even already paid them some money. All you people I keep saying this will just keep happening it's already been happening for the last ten or fifteen years you just don't know. 😂
Hats off to MGM for Not Being Bullied.
@@checkoutmyyoutubepage man that’s any establishment you go into today. Can you be more specific?
They're losing 350m's a day! They've already paid 15m. Another 15m is not going to hurt them. It's insane they're not paying the complete ransom
@@jacktripper8726 Why? To be hit again when they are running low on funds?
Has MGM confirmed they paid anything?
@tammie9147 they've paid 15m, CONFIRMED.
Your argument makes no sense. Pay it all or don't pay nothing! This is common sense and I shouldn't have to explain this to you. Losing 2.4 billion a week to save(?) 15m is mind-boggling.
@@jacktripper8726 thanks, I wasn’t aware they’d paid anything.
Good stuff! Yep it is a tough situation and I'm set to go to MGM Grand 10/15. I really hope it all is back to some set of normal. Scary! Feel so bad for those that were there and had to put up with that insanity!!
Thanks for the update. I've been following the LV news to try to keep up. It is a tough decision, losing tons of money everyday, but risking losing even more to the scammers by paying and being targeted over and over.
Thanks Marc. My ❤goes out to MGM. I’m not a big IT guy, but I’m like you… I wouldn’t want to pay the hackers as well. MGM will come back better and stronger! Keep us posted. Beautiful background scenery.🌱🌸🌸🌱
I know a person who who worked for MGM for a long time. They said they didn't want to pay competitive wages.
@@afveteran True, because they got rid of the IT department and outsource the job overseas, to that Help Desk staff that gave the hackers the link to update the password of the person he was impersonating. Such a steal in cost saving.
The longer this goes on the more insane it is! I truly can’t believe that it’s happening. Such a huge company is still so vulnerable to these people and it’s scary to think of the future. I wonder what’s going to happen. Thank you guys so much for addressing it!!!
Our local hospital last month got hacked
The more demand for Vegas!
Why should it be so insane? MGM literally got rid of their IT department and outsourced the IT support services to some data center in India or Malaysia or the Philippines. Saved a lot of money, just not enough to cover what MGM is forking out now to rebuild the IT infrastructure from the ground up to avoid paying the ransom and not be 100% sure the stolen data will not be leaked or sold on the dark web. Hornbuckle effed up good.
Thanks for the updates. Heading to Vegas on Wednesday for our annual weekly visit but not staying at a hotel. If MGM is still having problems we have lots of other choices for playing slots. We love the lights and 😮😮excitement of the strip and there are lots of things to do besides gambling. We always visit Fremont Street too to see what’s new. Love all your videos and especially playing slots with you and Brantley. Feels like I’m playing too only with bigger bets! Going to use your strategies this visit. Maybe we’ll be lucky! 🤞🤞🤞
I was at MGM casino. All slot machine screens were down, had low staff, and bar screen games on average people had to wait between 1 1/2- 2 1/2 hours to get paid. Said it was like that since Monday
I agree with MGM. Do not pay the ransom!!!!!! I will still go there!
We are heading over to a small casino for a few days. We always have a great time there. No worries. Thanks for the update Marc.
I am on my way to Vegas and will stay at NY NY they need our support for fighting against the attack and not paying them.
Absolutely agree about visiting the off-the-beaten-path casinos. When I visited Redwood National Park in northern California, I really enjoyed going to the tribal casinos in the evening after spending the day hiking in the park.
I was there from Mon-Fri when this started on Sun. It was crazy with people leaving little bits of money stranding the machines so no one could play until an attendant could “handpay” and switch it back on. It took 40 min to get a jackpot paid in the high limit room. Luxor. All paperwork was in triplicate and by hand each time. The Excalabar was about 45 min in high limit room. Staff was friendly, though! Took a different strategy. I couldn’t cruz machines. I had to stay with my machine till zero or a pay-out. It made me study carefully. ❤😅
You pay a ransom in order to get the hostage released. In this case if they pay the ransom the hostage is not freed. The hackers still have control of their systems. They will just ask for more money later.
This proves how vulnerable we all are depending on the internet. Its time to decouple some how. Or decentralize.
If the Internet goes down, the entire economy stops. That's damn scary. No gas, no groceries, no power, no water. Every system is controlled via internet
Our local hospital last month got hacked. It took time to get every thing back in order. They always have a paper backup system going back to the old days when computers did not exist and patient care was not compromised.
Hi... was at Muckleshoot casino in Washington on 9/15/23 and their ATM machines were down and slot machines were not paying out tickets... it was fine when we were there earlier that evening but sometime after 11 pm the machines started acting up...just FYI
Excellent vid Marc. Informative and to the point 👍
I’ve always enjoyed the Stations casinos, GVR/Sunset/Red Rocks are some of my favorites!!
I don't know details about social engineering and the AI technology hackers have been using, but the fact that this cyber attack apparently started with information of an IT employee posted on Linkedin, followed by a 10 min phone call, and MGM was down, it's really scary. Retiring in a ranch, in the middle of nowhere, without Internet, growing my own food, with a few chickens, is starting to sound like a great idea.
Avoid LinkedIn
Chinook Winds in Lincoln City Ore is always a good time!
I could just cry… this is a real sad situation 😢. Thank you for keeping us posted. Hopefully it will be resolved soon…
Thank you for the updates!😊
We are at Aria now. I was supposed to play in a slot tournament, which was cancelled understandably, however, they have to figure this out. Had they alerted me more than 24 hours before we were supposed to fly, we would have changed our plans. People are doing their best but after 3 nights it has gotten very tedious. On another note, I’ve been loyal to aria since it opened but I have to say, post covid, prices are astronomical. A bottle of water from our minibar, $26. A soda at the pool, $10. On top of that, what’s with the restaurant changes?
Weather looks beautiful there
Arriving tomorrow afternoon.. attending a wedding. Rooms are at the grand. However, wedding and other activities off-site.
Hope it goes OK. Not really a gaming trip but would rather have no issues.
Good advice to treat the Casinos workers nicely, the slots attendants .
You;re absolutely right --- NO RANSOM. Once you give them ransom, those hackers will continue. BTW can MGM ask help from, for example, Starlink, NSA, etc. who are good in detecting cyber hackers?
I’m curious about your visit to Seven Feathers. A bunch of us stayed there for a few days and couldn’t win on ANY slot machine. In fact I noticed no one in the casino was winning. It was very quiet in there and everyone seemed down as they tried to play the slots. Decided to never go back there.
We've actually done very well here - make sure you are playing the right machines as most of the casino floor is filled with high in volatility machines.
@@CowboySlots yes, that could have been an issue. When I was there I hadn’t started watching slot videos yet and learning about the different volatility games yet. But it did feel odd when we walked around the casino floor looking for games to play, unlike other places, we didn’t see anyone else winning either. Weird vibe.
I forgot you guys were here in Oregon this weekend. I wanted to see you but I made other plans. I hope you have a great time.
Thanks 😊 for the Information!
As Always Keep Those Reels Rolling!
Biloxi is a great place ,, beau rivage and the scarlet pearl are great casino/ hotels !
Wasn’t the Borgata in ACNJ compromised too?
In my dream world, a highly skilled unit is developed to seek and destroy (legally) black hat hackers worldwide. News outlets have reported the hackers that attacked MGM are Russian. There is no way Putin will allow western law enforcement to seek and punish cyber criminals within Russia.
Your advice about playing at casinos other that Strip properties is excellent. I play at locals’ casinos that have favorable video poker pay tables. I haven’t been to the Strip since 1992.
You guys are awesome, thanks so much for the update.
Thanks for the update Marc! Good luck to you and Brantley. Be safe.
Great video. Thanks for the update.
Thanks for sharing this information to us!!
I am disgusted that Caesars did that! There's ZERO assurance that Caesars player info won't be compromised!!
Off subject. What were the machines where you dont have to declare taxes on?? Can you explain? Love the way you conduct your vids with detailed instructions 😊
Its a wake up call for NO CBDC /Digital Currency.
Forget the Casino, we as a nation better stay on hard currency.
Curious if the tier status points are still being calculated
Thank You for update enjoy the weekend.
This is awesome news! I 🙏 they never pay these evil people!
My question is why don’t casinos have a redundancy(disaster recovery) backup systems in place? It’s not like they can’t afford an elaborate backup. system. Worst case they would’ve been down a couple of days. On the flip side I would’ve paid the 200m, definitely upgrade my backup system, then terminate employees responsible for not backing up critical systems.
Already compromised since we have stayed several times at mgm. Not losing my air fare too. Might as well go and make the best of it. Mgm has always treated us fairly. Time to have their back!
Bet your enjoying that weather in Oregon, lots cooler than Texas.
Thanks for the info.
Thank you Marc!
It's kind of like giving in to your kid when they're pitching a fit in the store because they want a toy......you give in once and they'll do it every.single.time.🤣
We are planning on going October 4th, what are the chances of this being fixed by then?
He can’t answer that- no one knowa
@chem3066 I figured, just thought I would ask to try an so glimmer of hope that it would be fixed by then.
For a December trip should I book Caesars?
thank you for the update.
Been in Bellagio since Wednesday, 9/13 and I just checked out today. First 3 days we can only use one master key. Most slot machines doesnt accept the player card and they cannot give me my freeplay, which they told me they will provide in my future visits (they cant compensate the airfare though). I do have resort credits snd unfortunately, the mgm restaurant i went to can’t be charged to the room since there is still “system error” so I have to pay using my credit card. Bellagio said that I can’t use it to offset my resort since I paid it through my credit card. Nothing they can do as their system is still down. What a waste of money to be in their mess!!
So my question is that if the slots have no outside influence then how did these hackers freeze all the screens on the slot machines? I constantly hear you guys saying that it's impossible to do something to the machines without unlocking them but yet this happened 🤔
The hackers didn't freeze the machines, management did. Watch our 2nd update video to understand why.
@CowboySlots I watched the video, I've never missed one yet 👍
This information came straight from the MGM manager on television saying that the hackers froze all the slot machines 🤷♂️
What a babooze. Need to get your facts straight. 🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️
By the way you look like you’re in such a chill spot! Hope you guys have great luck today
should i be concerned about my information having stayed at the luxor back in july?
Is it safe to go to Harrahs Vegas? I believe it's a Ceasars property..they got hacked as well. Oct 13 to 15 is my planned Vegas trip staying at Harrahs
You should be fine. I wouldn't cancel.
You guys rock. Thank you
What are the MGM properties affected ?
Not true on the Tito system in Springfield mass . You win you cash out and put ticket in dispenser . Love cowboy slots channel
They may not be able to legally even if they were interested in paying. If the hackers are on the OFAC list or have been otherwise sanctioned by the US government, paying them would be illegal.
Bring back coin slots. Nothing like seeing/hearing coins dropping into the tray.
I only turn to u 2 for this news!!!❤
What can they do to keep this from happening again. Wholeheartedly agree with MGM to not pay.
Cant afford comps right now with all the issues
I think Caesars made a grave mistake paying off. Too bad they can't shut down and run Emsisoft Emergency Kit. Then thumb their nose at the scammers. So glad I don't have some giant network.
What about casinos they own in Colorado
Paying ransom makes me think of the mob going to different businesses demanding money to allow the business to stay open - yes, I only know about TV. It's my understanding this practice happened in real life. It's my understanding this is nothing new about these hackers. If you pay once, you'll end up being requested to pay again. 😮
I know someone that owns a really good cyber security company- he's one of the best
Ya its crazy!
Have a good time
i bet the competion are receiving extra trade due to the MGM issues. The loyal supporters will put with up the delays.
Hey, Mark…have you heard any news about Venetian? I’ve been locked out of my player account for two days…just weird timing, maybe…..
Yes, but it’s completely unrelated. They were just doing a planned software update.
@@CowboySlots …..Thanks so much for the reply!
Is that tree behind you real?
Never pay ransom or the pandoras box will be opened.
I say just go to a different locations I never stay at MGM
At this point, they need offer credit protection to patrons.
Vegas Customers going to take it on all Emploees, Emploeeys going to play the Price...no Tipping🥶
The primary question is why are these systems exposed to the internet.
The only way to provide tools such as being able to track your points, see your hotel reservations, etc. There has to be a connection between public and private networks. Normally, this stuff isn't accessible, but in the case of MGM - they were social engineered to grant access to the hackers. That was the weak point.
Why are such critical internal computer informaton systems connected to the outside world? Why no reduncancy?
The more dependable we get on technology the more vulnerable we are AI will change the world and it’s already starting,hold on to you’re butts it’s gonna be a bumpy ride
Ok to pit simply normally that be true to not pay but the MGM was so incompetent that they are shut out if their own servers. That hold their back ups same servers. They either pay or redo the whole infrastructure.
Smaller one would be more fun and Definately CHeaper !!
No way should they pay !
Requested? More accurate to say demanded.
They did pay , $15 Million
Caesars paid, not MGM
@@vickifeeback168 Yes you are correct - but MGM won't divulge what happens behind closed doors
Well that’s evil vs evil both sides steal money 🤦🏾♂️
Use part of what would’ve been a ransom as a reward for someone to turn these assholes in.
Ive lost trust and respect for Caesars
ty for the info shouldnt pay terrorists
Ransom ware is the same as kidnapping. If you capitulate they WILL do it again. The INTERNATIONAL law needs to be boosted to put a stop to it with HARSH penalties.
They have insurance for this. The insurance company will negotiate and eventually pay
At all the MGN properties they are not bacj yo and running. So many nachiens are down its not even funny. Theybare not even close to up and running. We were walking around these peoperties Saturday morning
Ceasars got hit as well
We were set to go 9/30 at Vadra but will hold off to go, just don’t want to be in that mess. Coming from Maui is like leaving one mess into another 🥹😩😂😂🙏