Canadian gambling site back live

PlayNow.com – the British Columbia government-backed online gambling service – was back in the game in late August.

Plagued by an embarrassing security breach within hours of its splashy launch earlier in the summer, the site was given a reprieve by the province's information and privacy commissioner following an investigation.

In a letter to BC Lottery Corporation President and CEO Michael Graydon, Elizabeth Denham stated that her office concurred with the gaming authority's conclusion that a “data crossover” issue had been the cause of the security breakdown. An incorrect configuration setting resulted in customer credentials being assigned to other customers. In all, 134 accounts were affected, with the personal account information of 12 players being exposed to another player.

In a news conference, Graydon said that all accounts had been reconciled and that credit monitoring was being provided to those whose financial information was revealed.

“It was really a series of unique events,” he said, adding that he is confident that the system will regain the trust of its 140,000 customers.

Denham acknowledged that “gambling websites require the collection, use and disclosure of customer financial information. The nature of these websites exposes personal information to greater risk.”

She announced that her office is continuing to investigate if the lottery corporation has the “appropriate levels of security” in place to protect its customers' personal information.