Saratoga Suffers ‘IT Issues,’ Casino Ops Impacted in New York, Colorado, Mississippi

Posted on: November 4, 2024, 11:33h. 

Last updated on: November 4, 2024, 11:44h.

Devin O'Connor @CasinoorgDevinO Read More
Expertise: Asia Pacific Gaming, Commercial Gaming, Legislation, Politics.

Saratoga Casino Holdings suffered an information technology glitch late last week that rendered some operations unavailable at the company’s three commercial casinos. Three days later, the company’s casinos in Colorado and Mississippi remain closed.

Saratoga Casino Holdings IT glitch
The Saratoga Casino Hotel in Saratoga Springs, NY. The parent company of the casino, Saratoga Casino Holdings, continues to battle an IT issue that has disrupted operations at its properties in New York, Mississippi, and Colorado. (Image: Saratoga Casino Holdings)

Saratoga Casino Holdings is based in Saratoga Springs in upstate New York. The company’s namesake property — Saratoga Casino Hotel — is a horse racetrack and casino offering 1,200 slot-like video lottery terminals and electronic table games.

The firm additionally owns and operates Saratoga Casino Black Hawk in Colorado and Magnolia Bluffs Casino in Natchez, Miss. On social media over the weekend, Saratoga Casino Holdings confirmed an IT event at its Colorado and Mississippi casinos forced the properties to temporarily close.

Our IT team has made progress on resolving the issue and we hope to open as soon as possible,” the Saratoga Casino Black Hawk Facebook account shared. “Thank you for your understanding and we apologize for any inconvenience.”

Magnolia Bluffs issued a similar message.

Magnolia Bluffs will remain closed. We will continue to update you as progress is being made to resolve the issue,” a Facebook post explained.

Saratoga Casino Black Hawk and Magnolia Bluffs both remained closed as of noon on Monday.

Along with its three casinos, Saratoga is part of a consortium seeking a downstate New York casino license for an integrated resort on Coney Island.  

Patron Complaints at Saratoga Casino

While Saratoga Casino Holdings shuttered its Colorado and Mississippi casinos due to the technical problems, the Saratoga Casino Hotel remained open as of Monday. Patrons took to social media to express their frustrations with the casino’s limited operations, which included rewards cards and certain promotions being disabled.

“We just left. [The] system is still down. No free play and no points earned,” said patron Sharon Gates.

Some asked if they would be compensated for not receiving their rewards promos and for not being told about the casino’s IT problems until arriving at the property. While Saratoga Black Hawk and Magnolia Bluffs issued advisories on social media about the operational difficulties, Saratoga Casino Hotel shared a post encouraging guests to enjoy the extra hour provided by daylight savings to “try your luck and make every minute count.”

“That extra hour could lead to a jackpot!” the casino posted. 

Culprit Unknown 

Saratoga Casino Holdings hasn’t said publicly what is causing the IT struggles and whether a hacking event triggered the incident.

All properties were impacted in some way,” said Amy Brannigan, Saratoga Casino Holdings’ marketing director. “Unfortunately, we have no update on a timeframe for reopening.”

Casinos have been targets of hackers and ransomware groups in recent years.

MGM Resorts and Caesars Entertainment, two of the largest casino operators in the US, were both infamously targeted last year by a hacking group that used “social engineering” to infiltrate the companies’ sensitive computer servers.

The hacks cost MGM more than $100 million after it refused to pay a ransom. Caesars admitted to paying the hackers $15 million to have its systems restored with only minimal disruption.