The Reno-based publicly traded company told the federal Securities and Exchange Commission that it could not guarantee that personal information about tens of millions of customers was secure following a data breach Sept. 7 that may have exposed driver's license and Social Security numbers of loyalty rewards members.
"We have taken steps to ensure that the stolen data is deleted by the unauthorized actor," the company said, "although we cannot guarantee this result."
, threat analyst for the -based cybersecurity firm Emsisoft, said it was not clear if a ransom was paid or who was responsible for the intrusion -- and for the attack reported Monday by .
"Unofficially, we saw a group called Scattered Spider claimed responsibility," Callow said. "They appear to be native English speakers under the umbrella of a -based operation called ALPHV or BlackCat."
Caesars is the largest casino owner in the world, with more than 65 million Caesars Rewards members and properties in 18 states and under the Caesars, Harrah's, Horseshoe and Eldorado brands. It also has mobile and online operations and sports betting. Company officials did not respond to emailed questions from The Associated Press.
The company told the that loyalty program customers were being offered credit monitoring and identity theft protection.
There was no evidence the intruder obtained member passwords or bank account and payment card information, the company reported, adding that operations at casinos and online "have not been impacted by this incident and continue without disruption."
The disclosure by Caesars came after , the largest casino company in , reported publicly on Monday that a cyberattack that it detected Sunday led it to shut down computer systems at its properties across the to protect data.
said reservations and casino floors in and other states were affected. Customers shared stories on social media about not being able to make credit card transactions, obtain money from cash machines or enter hotel rooms. Some video slot machines were dark.
has has about 40 million loyalty rewards members and tens of thousands of hotel rooms in at properties including the , Bellagio, Aria and . It also operates properties in and .
A company report on Tuesday to the pointed to its Monday news release. The FBI said an investigation was ongoing but offered no additional information.
Some computer systems were still down Thursday, including hotel reservations and payroll. But company spokesman said its 75,000 employees in the and abroad were expected to be paid on time.
Callow, speaking by telephone from , called most media accounts of the incidents speculative because information appeared to be coming from the same entities that claim to have carried out the attacks. He said recovery from cyberattacks can take months.
"In these cases, organizations basically pay to get a 'pinky promise,'" he said. "There is no way to actually know that (hackers) do delete (stolen data) or that it won't be used elsewhere."
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