change take
The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department issued a cyber awareness advisory for two safety conferences held in the city.
Andrea Doyle
It’s been nearly a year since MGM and Caesars properties were vandalized by cybercriminals. This time of year, hackers and cybersecurity professionals head to Las Vegas for two major conferences: Black Hat and DefCon.
Black Hat concludes Thursday at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center. DefCon will be held on August 11 at the Las Vegas Convention Center, with 30,000 attendees expected.
Las Vegas law enforcement is taking the opportunity to educate event attendees about online safety.
“Black Hat and Def Con are known as playgrounds for a variety of attackers who target attendees and experiment with new technologies and tools,” the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department wrote in a report.
Additionally, Resorts World, which houses some attendees, told guests they would undergo room inspections.
“In light of recent events in Las Vegas and the increasing ransomware threats faced by casinos and hotels on the Las Vegas Strip, we have notified all guests staying at our hotels that effective August 5, 2024 Starting Monday and continuing through next week, we will conduct brief, scheduled, visual and non-intrusive room inspections daily,” Resorts World said in a statement. “These inspections are standard practice at many high-end hotels in Las Vegas. Especially during a period of foreseeable increased risk, it is critical to remain vigilant.
Ensure information security
LVMPD’s Cyber Investigation Group (CIG) has released tips for keeping your information safe, especially when these meetings are taking place in town. Great message for meeting professionals to keep in mind.
Prior to the meeting, CIG recommends having firewall and antivirus software available. Additionally, it is recommended to back up all data and enable two-factor authentication.
During meetings, it’s a good idea to turn off all Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. Also, use a reliable VPN or set your phone to airplane mode. It is also recommended to restart your phone every day to remove any malware that may have been installed. It even recommends avoiding credit cards — “cash is king.”
Meetings are open events with attendees using multiple devices, making them vulnerable to attacks. Kevin Coffey, a retired Los Angeles Police Department detective and travel security and conference risk trainer, stresses the importance of meeting with professionals who consult with IT departments on cybersecurity. Every touchpoint of the meeting should be analyzed. and discussed possible risks.
Not if it will happen but when it will happen
Data privacy disclosure and enforcement should now be standard for event organizers and sponsors.
“Cybercrime will never go away. Especially today, professional foreign cybercriminals are trying to cause multiple data breaches that affect the world,” said executive consultant Kevin Iwamoto, who recently retired as chief account officer and corporate executive at Bizly. “All event organizers need to continually be aware of and take seriously what could happen if their event data is compromised.”
Because time is of the essence, a plan of action is needed, Iwamoto said. “Event professionals should be thinking more about this, like when and if this happens.”
Iwamoto added that they should regularly consult with data and cybersecurity professionals to evaluate their current data protection processes and develop appropriate response plans should a cyberattack occur.
