A British man named William Anthony Parker has been sentenced to two and a half years in prison in Finland for hacking into two online casinos and stealing approximately €835K (US$900K). The District Court of Central Finland found Parker guilty of aggravated online casino fraud. He exploited a security vulnerability in the casinos’ systems to manipulate game results in his favor and benefit financially.
Parker committed these crimes between April and May 2023 in Vantaa, Finland, despite being a resident of the UK. Prosecutors believe he acted alone in carrying out these cybercrimes. When he was arrested in central Finland in January of the following year, he was initially charged with gross data breach and financial fraud. The total damage caused by his actions was estimated to be around €1.3 million (US$1.4 million).
During the preliminary investigation, assets found in Parker’s possession, including over €9K (US$9.7K) in cash and 100 gold coins, were frozen by court order. Prosecutors sought a prison sentence of over three years for Parker, but the court’s verdict is still subject to appeal.
This case sheds light on the increasing sophistication of cybercriminals targeting both online and land-based casinos. In a similar incident in September 2023, hackers stole approximately $41 million worth of cryptocurrency from the crypto gambling site Stake.com. This breach was considered sophisticated and was attributed to North Korea’s Lazarus Group by the FBI.
Around the same time, major land-based casino companies like Caesars and MGM Resorts experienced ransomware attacks organized by a hacking group known as “Scattered Spider.” MGM faced operational disruptions for several days, resulting in an estimated $100 million in damage, while Caesars paid a ransom of about $15 million to restore normal services.
These incidents highlight the importance of robust cybersecurity measures for both online and offline gambling establishments to protect themselves from such cyber threats. It also emphasizes the need for international cooperation to combat cybercrime effectively.
