Russian Scammers Targeting US Casino Slots

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Tuesday, March 28th, 2017 | Written by Adam Brown

Russia has been in the American news a lot lately, but the most recent hacking story to come out of the country has nothing to do with politics. According to an article published in Wired last month, a talented group of Russian hackers used their skills to steal money from land-based casinos located across the USA.

Lumiere Casino in St. Louis

The story begins with Lumiere Casino in St. Louis. For two days in June 2014, a number of slot machines on the casino floor had a negative hold, meaning that they paid out more cash than they held, despite not having awarded any large jackpot winnings. While it’s possible for this to happen naturally, the fact that it occurred two times over a short period raised the red flag with casino accountants of possible cheating activity.

Security professionals at Lumiere Casino then poured over camera footage to see what had transpired at the slot machines, and that’s when they spotted who would later be identified as Murat Bilev. The Russian national was seen playing the slots and enjoying incredible streaks of luck on their casino floor; however, the camera did not spot him making any physical modifications to the machines.

How the Cheat Works

Instead, the cameras saw Bilev standing close to the machines with an iPhone, while also holding his finger over the Spin Button in a way that differs with how the average player typically repetitively taps the button. Once the Missouri Gaming Commission was involved, law enforcement was soon able to track the man through rental car receipts and finally learn his identity. It turns out that Bilev was working for a Russian-based criminal enterprise that was using high tech hacking tricks that allowed him to parlay a $20 bankroll into $21,000 over just 2-days.

Returned to Scene of Crime

Bilev might have escaped punishment if he had not returned to the United States in December of 2014 for another Missouri casinos hacking spree. He arrived at the Hollywood Casino in St. Louis with co-conspirators Ivan Gudalov, Igor Larenov and Yevgeniy Nazarov, only to be greeted by federal agents who promptly arrested them. The Wired article reports that Bilev and two of the men pled guilty at trial, and subsequently received 2-year federal prison sentences.

Arrests Made

The final man, Yevgeniy Nazarov, who resides in Florida, called for religious asylum and provided information to assist with the investigation. Federal agents said that he is currently helping them apprehend the leaders of the hacking ring, which is believed to be located in St. Petersburg. Consequently, Nazarov’s sentencing has been delayed until the case is closed.

Fueled by Russian Casino Closures

In 2009, Russian casinos were banned in Moscow, and the gambling venues are currently limited to a number of gambling zones situated in far flung regions across the vast country. As a result, Russian hackers that once targeted weaknesses in their domestic home-based casinos have been striking abroad. This points to the need for casinos across the United States to be on the lookout for irregularities in slot machine performance. Even though the culprits of the heist in the Wired article have been caught, others are likely to follow in their footsteps or come up with new ways to try and defraud America’s casino industry.

Getting More Sophisticated

As more information comes to light, it turns out that the Russian hacking ring consists of more than a couple of dozen operatives who have been scamming casinos located all around the world. Since a number of their group were arrested, though, the gang has become increasingly more sophisticated, and have been limiting their lucrative criminal activity to under $10,000 per day in order not to alert the attention of security.

Other tactics include placing their smartphones inside their shirt pockets to record the slot machine activity, and also using Skype to relay the information in real-time. While US casinos would be able to foil the gang by replacing their older slots model, such a move would be more costly than falling prey to the occasional scam.