Affinity Gaming reports ‘intrusion’ into card processing system

By Las Vegas Sun Staff (contact)

Published Friday, Dec. 20, 2013 | 11:44 a.m.

Updated Friday, Dec. 20, 2013 | 1:59 p.m.

Affinity Gaming, which operates five casinos in Nevada, has reported an “unauthorized intrusion” into a system that processes customer credit and debit cards.

In a public notice on its website, the company said the system was infected with malware, but “outside experts have confirmed that our system has been fully secured and our customers’ payments are protected.”

People who visited Affinity casinos between March 14 and Oct. 16 should take steps to protect their identities and financial information, the Las Vegas-based company said.

In Nevada, Affinity operates the Silver Sevens in Las Vegas, Rail City in Sparks and Buffalo Bill’s, Primm Valley Resort and Whiskey Pete’s, all in Primm. It has six other casinos in Iowa, Missouri and Colorado.

The situation is under investigation, and law enforcement and gaming officials have been notified, the Las Vegas-based company said.

The company was notified Oct. 24 about fraudulent charges that may have been linked to an Affinity casino in Iowa. Affinity said it immediately began an investigation that determined the system used throughout the casino chain was infected by malware.

A notice was posted on the company's website Nov. 14, while today's notice was distributed more broadly.

It wasn't clear how many cardholders were affected, but Affinity's lawyer, Jim Prendergast, estimated it was fewer than 300,000.

The company also said it confirmed an unauthorized intrusion at its Primm Center Gas Station that began on an unknown date and ended Nov. 29.

Prendergast said skimmers that can surreptitiously read debit and credit card data were placed on three gas pumps.

A toll-free phone number for customers to call for more information is 877-238-2179.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.