WATONGA – Two weeks after closing amid a ransomware attack, the Watonga location of Lucky Star Casino reopened on Saturday, July 3.
It was the third Lucky Star location to reopen, after Concho and Clinton. Other Lucky Star casinos in Hammon and Canton are still closed after the attack.
Lucky Star first announced that it was temporarily closing all its locations on Friday, June 18, for what it called “internet disruption.” But by June 21, as the casinos had still not reopened, Lucky Star issued a statement saying it was the victim of a ransomware attack.
Ransomware attacks occur when hackers infiltrate a business, organization or government agency and deny access to sensitive information, essentially holding it hostage. They demand a ransom from the organization to restore that access.
On June 22, Gov. Reggie Wassana of the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes – which operates Lucky Star – issued a statement saying the tribes “did not negotiate nor surrender” with the hackers and that they did not “receive one cent from the members of the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes.”
The tribes worked with federal law enforcement and IT professionals to counter the attack, Wassana said.
Ransomware attacks are a large and growing problem across the country and around the world. Already this year, they have temporarily hobbled U.S. oil and gas production, the beef market and other industries and organizations.