Hard Rock's Las Vegas Hotel & Casino Hacked

Las Vegas casinos are renowned for their stringent physical security. Security cameras and bouncers don’t necessarily discourage cyberattacks, however, and a major Vegas property disclosed this weekend that hackers had spent the past seven months stealing credit card data from its systems.

The Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Las Vegas sent letters to an undisclosed number of consumers on Friday telling them their personal information had been compromised.

“This criminal attack was limited to credit or debit card transactions between September 3rd, 2014 and April 2nd, 2015 at restaurant, bar and retail locations at the Hard Rock Hotel Las Vegas property, including the Culinary Dropout Restaurant,” the letter says. Information stolen includes names, card numbers and CVV verification codes, but not PIN codes.

“We sincerely apologize for this incident, regret any inconvenience it may cause you and encourage you to take advantage of the product outlined herein,” said the letter, signed by Jody Lake, Chief Operating Officer of the casino.

The offer Lake references is one year of fraud resolution and identity protection through a service provided by credit bureau Experian.

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The Hard Rock is not the first Vegas casino to announce it’s been hacked recently. Last year, the Sands Corporation suffered a crippling cyberattack that saw hackers destroy some data and post personal employee information, including Social Security numbers, on the Sands website. No customer information was impacted by the attack, the company said at the time. Earlier this year, U.S. director of national intelligence James Clapper accused the Iranian government of involvement in the hacks.

The Hard Rock hackers’ motivation appears to be different. Still, it serves as a fresh reminder that every corporation — even those that are among the most security sensitive — can be a target.

If you think your credit or debt card information has been stolen, it’s important to notify your financial institution immediately, and to check your statements for fraudulent transactions. Checking your credit reports can also help you spot signs of fraud – like higher credit card balances if a thief has gotten a hold of an existing account, or a new account you didn’t open. Monitoring your credit scores over time can help you see trends, and if there are any big, unexpected changes, you should look at your credit reports and financial statements for more details. You’re entitled to a free credit report every year from AnnualCreditReport.com. And there are many ways to get your credit scores for free, including Credit.com.