Cameras Hijacked During $A36 million Crown Casino Melbourne Scam?

 

MELBOURNE’S Herald Sun has reported a gambler used video from security cameras to see opponent's cards and scam the Crown Towers Casino for around $A32 million in 8 key hands.
According to the report, the gambler was being hosted in one of Crown's high-roller suites. Apparently during the play, an unauthorised person was given remote access to the casino's surveillance systems and was able to relay information about opponents' hands to the gambler. 

One imaginable possibility is that a member of the gamblers’ own entourage was allowed to monitor scenes using security cameras that were then used to watch other players but this seems highly irregular and is likely to fly in the face of tight official procedure.

Victorian Law Reform Commission report states that Crown Casino has "one of the most advanced, complex and comprehensive video surveillance systems currently in use in Victoria".

In the wake of the scam a gambling expert Barron Stringfellow told ABC Melbourne that hacking a casino's security system isn't as hard as one would imagine. "It's very easy to intercept a signal from many casinos that don't take precautions." 

However, Robert D. Grossman, a US security consultant who works extensively with casinos, is reported to be surprised by the scam as it’s unusual to obtain unauthorised access to a gaming surveillance system. 

It’s hard not to speculate that if a third party was given access to cameras it must have been under very unusual circumstances. Standard casino surveillance procedures are strict, modern digital cameras generally live on secure subnets with little or no remote access, gaming cameras are separated from security cameras and gaming CCTV teams are strictly vetted. 

Meanwhile, a Crown spokesman said the casino was investigating the rort.

"Crown's surveillance department recently reported concerns over a sophisticated betting scam," he said. "A Crown investigation is under way and is ongoing."

Source: http://www.securityelectronicsandnetworks.com/NewsDetail/13-03-24/cameras_hijacked_during_a36_million_crown_casino_melbourne_scam_.aspx



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Gallagher Security Releasing Command Centre v9.40 At SAGE 2025 In Canberra November 20.


Gallagher Security Releasing Command Centre v9.40 – Gallagher Security will be bringing its newly released Command Centre v9.40 management software to Security & Government Expo, to be held at the Realm Hotel in Canberra, November 20.

According to the Gallagher Security team, Command Centre v9.40, a major upgrade that significantly enhances the capabilities of the Controller 7000 product range.  With Command Centre v9.40, Gallagher’s Controller 7000 product range, including the Standard, Enhanced, and High Security variants, now supports up to 24 doors per controller, more than doubling the previous limit of 10.  

This advancement reduces infrastructure costs and simplifies system architecture, while maintaining high performance in demanding environments. Additionally, support for HBUS readers has increased from 20 to 40, and OSDP readers from 16 to 32, enabling larger and more flexible installations.

A standout new feature is Lock Cycle Counting, which enables proactive lock maintenance to prevent costly failures and downtime.  

Also available with v9.40 is Entra ID single sign on. The Command Centre integration with Microsoft Entra ID enables secure and seamless single sign on authentication using OpenID Connect.

This integration allows customers to align with their organisation’s cloud-first identity strategy, reduce reliance on legacy AD infrastructure, and benefit from centralised access control, multi-factor authentication, and conditional access policies – all managed through Microsoft Entra. This simplifies user management, enhances security, and supports smoother migration to modern identity platforms.

 
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