Hackers were able to access Ohio Lottery systems during a cyberattack on Dec. 24, though gaming machines and technology were not affected.
“The Ohio Lottery recently encountered a cybersecurity incident, and we now have reason to believe that an unauthorized third party obtained access to information belonging to our customers and retailers,” Ohio Lottery said in a statement on its website. “Out of an abundance of caution, we urge you to be vigilant in monitoring their account statements for fraudulent or irregular activity.”
Ransomware group DragonForce claimed responsibility for the attack. The group alleges to have stolen more than 600 gigabytes of data, including personal information of employees and players, such as names, addresses, Social Security numbers and details of winnings. DragonForce has threatened to release the stolen data publicly.
DragonForce is a new ransomware gang that published 21 victims to its leak site last month, but little else is known about them. Malwarebytes reports that the group’s sophisticated negotiation methods and the similarity of its attacks to previous ones suggest DragonForce could be a rebranded version of a previous gang.
The Lottery has launched an investigation to determine the extent of the breach and the specific data affected and said it will take all necessary measures to provide credit monitoring services if consumer data is compromised.
“People who play the lottery need to know what’s going on,” Edward Riley, an 85-year-old Ohio Lottery player, told the Akron Beacon-Journal.
After winning $1,000 on a scratch-off ticket, the Lottery told Riley to use the operator’s mobile app or mail his ticket to lottery headquarters to receive his winnings. Opting to use the mobile app, he told the Beacon-Journal that it took him four hours to claim his winnings because of his lack of tech skills. After claiming, the Lottery told him he’d have to wait 10 days to get his winnings because it was the first time he’d claimed them through the app.
“I’m 85. I can’t wait forever. I have my dogs and lottery. This is what I do,” Riley said.
