Casino chain shuts Ontario sites after cyber attack

News media across Ontario are reporting that a major casino operator in the province has been shut since Sunday due to a cyber incident.

The company is Gateway Casino and Entertainment Ltd., which operates 14 casinos across Ontario, and others in Alberta and British Columbia. But it is the Ontario sites that have been affected.

The company has not replied to two phone calls and an email asking for details. Nor is there a statement on its website. But Muskoka411, a central Ontario news site, quoted a Monday news release from Gateway saying its sites “will remain closed in the coming days as we work to restore our IT systems.

“Over the weekend, we detected a cyber security incident and closed our operations in Ontario. We have retained third-party cyber professionals who are working 24/7 to help us restore the IT environment,” the statement says.

“Our upmost concern is the protection of personal data and information.  At this point, we do not have any information indicating that this incident involves any compromise of personal data. However, we are in the process of notifying the relevant privacy officials and gaming regulator [the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Commission] of the incident.”

Gateway operates casinos in Sault Ste. Marie, Thunder Bay, North Bay, Clinton, Chatham, Hanover, London, Point Edward, Sarnia, Woodstock, Wasaga Beach, Innisfil. It also operates the gambling portion of the Casino Rama resort, which is jointly owned by the Chippewas of Rama First Nation and the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation.

According to the Toronto Star, Casino Rama Resort’s hotel, spa, Weirs restaurant and St. Germain’s restaurant will remain open.

Gateway Casinos is majority owned by the Toronto-based Catalyst Capital Group Inc. a private equity investment firm with more than $6 billion in assets under management.

The shutting of casinos would cause a temporary loss of work for dealers, floor runners, tellers, accountants and others who keep the operation going. At its sites in all three provinces, Gateway says it employs 7,000 people.