Hackers and Extortion
It’s Not Just About Sportsbooks
 Recent
Denial of Service (DoS) attacks against several popular offshore
sportsbooks have raised a few eyebrows and given cause for concern
in the sports gambling community. There are fears,
rumors and speculation that these attacks and extortion demands
are -- for whatever reason -- aimed only at the offshore gaming
industry. Nothing could be further from the truth. Hacking
and blackmail attacks have been waged against mainstream corporations
and businesses, almost since the inception of the internet.
Companies like Fujitsu, Visa, CD Universe,
and many more have had their systems compromised and stolen
data held for ransom. In fact, this highlights a major difference
in those attacks as compared to what’s going on today
with the offshore sportsbooks.
In the extortion attempts against Fujitsu,
Visa, CD Universe et al, corporate and/or customer data was
stolen. So far, in the DoS attacks against online sportsbooks,
no data has been compromised. The only thing
being stolen is bandwidth (aside from the obvious loss of
revenue on the part of the books). So, despite the inconveniences
this creates for users who are unable to access their favorite
betting shops while under attack, players can rest assured
that no personal data has been lost.
This is not intended to minimize the extent
and scope of the problem. But it does illustrate the fact
that the offshore sportsbook industry is not the only victim.
Any online venture that is perceived to have enough revenue
to make extortion a viable option is a potential target. However,
as long as companies refuse to give in to these criminals
and their extortion demands, the entire internet community
will be taking steps in the right direction.
According to experts on such matters, companies
should never give in to the blackmailer’s ransom demands.
And that is exactly why top shops like VIP
Sports, GameDay
and others are taking a stand. By utilizing the latest security
measures and some of the sharpest IT minds available, the
books are seeking to take control away from the hackers, rather
than giving in to their demands. If all sportsbooks -- and
all mainstream companies and corporations, for that matter
– band together, refuse the ransom demands, enhance
their security and report these attacks to the appropriate
authorities, then the extortion racket may eventually lose
its appeal.
In the meantime, and until the latest round
of attacks diminish, offshore sportsbook players should prepare
themselves for more possible downtime. In the case of players
with accounts at a VIP Management property, the following
steps should be taken.
Be sure you have wagering phone
numbers and email contacts on hand for your particular book
(see contact list below). This way, should an access problem
arise, you’ll be able to wager by phone; or, if the
problem is related to your IP (see below), you’ll
have the necessary contact information.
We recommend that you establish
funded accounts with more than one VIP-managed shop, in
the event you have difficulty accessing any one book in
particular. Visit our Recommended
Sportsbooks list.
If, despite reports that the sites are online,
you are still unable to access VIPsports, BetGameDay, WSSBsport,
Bet19, FairDealSports, BetonGames or 5 Card Charlie, the following
information explains how to get back online with your particular
book.
In an effort to combat the DDoS attacks
and extortion demands, VIP-managed books have blocked out
certain IP addresses, thus minimizing the severity of the
attacks. During this process, however, some “innocent”
IPs are being blocked inadvertently. Fortunately, there is
a solution:
1. Go to http://www.vipschedules.com/myip.asp
and write down the number you see on that page. This is
the IP address of your computer.
2. Then email the sportsbook
with your account ID and your IP address (from step one).
See below for the contact information
for all VIP-managed books.
3. VIP Management will
pass this information upstream to their provider who will
make the necessary adjustments to unblock your IP address.
This will typically require a maximum of 24 hours.
Contact Information
VIP
Sports
http://www.vipsports.com
1-800-606-3576
memberservices@vipsports.com
manager@vipsports.com
BetGameDay
http://www.betgameday.com
1-800-386-2387
PlayerInfo@BetGameDay.com
Manager@BetGameDay.com
FairDealSports
http://www.fairdealsports.com
1-800-769-5651
memberservices@fairdealsports.com
5
Card Charlie
http://www.5cardcharlie.com
1-800-606-4386
Charlie@FiveCardCharlie.com
BetonGames
http://www.betongames.com
1-888-426-3800
playerinfo@betongames.com
Manager@BetOnGames.com
Wall
Street Super Book (WSSB)
http://www.wssbsport.com
1-800-486-7040
memberservices@wssbsport.com
manager@wssbsport.com
Bet19.com
http://www.bet19.com
1-800-888-6294
1-800-478-5874
PlayerInfo@Bet19.com
Manager@Bet19.com
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