Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact Information:
Andjelika Martin
Email andjelika@hardrockandmadness.com
Phone: (702) 301-2722

Convicted Felon Behind Only Unbreached Vegas Casino 2009-2016 is Now Available for Interviews
Recent Ransomware Attacks Exposed Ongoing Vulnerabilities since 2009, Proving Legacy Casinos Failed to Learn from Their Mistakes.

Las Vegas, NV – September 25, 2023 – The recent ransomware attacks on MGM Resorts and Caesars Entertainment casinos have left the gaming industry and security experts scrambling, and the spotlight turns on the hauntingly repetitive failures of these legacy institutions. These breaches are not the first time a string of Las Vegas casinos found themselves vulnerable. Just the most publicized. Notably, between 2009 and 2016, casinos under MGM Resorts, Caesars Entertainment, and Hard Rock Hotel & Casino were breached more than six times, revealing a chronic inability to safeguard their digital assets.

Amidst the chaos and turbulence, one Casino stood unaffected between 2009 and 2016: The M Resort Las Vegas. Astoundingly, the brain behind this former fortress-like security is a convicted felon, Andjelika Martin, who is now available for interviews and offers an incredible story of redemption and skill in the high-stakes cybersecurity landscape.

    Key Insights from Andjelika Martin, the expert behind M Resort's unbeaten security 2009-2016:

  • How outsourcing, automation, undervalued workforce, and overvalued C-Level Executive performance bonuses contribute to cyber vulnerabilities.
  • Insider information on how legacy casinos continue to repeat the same mistakes, making them perpetual targets for sophisticated cyberattacks.

    Key Highlights:

  1. M Resort Las Vegas was the only Casino impervious to cyberattacks between 2009 and 2016, contrasting sharply with multiple breaches at Hard Rock Hotel, MGM Resort, and Ceasars Entertainment during the same time and continued recent ransomware breaches at MGM Resorts and Ceasars Entertainment.
  2. Despite a lean I.T. staff, between 2009-2016, the M Resort maintained all servers in-house and had only one person (her) in charge of everything internet, which included the entire website and web servers. Andjelika Martin's unique approach to from-scratch coding and hands-on web server management dramatically outperformed the industry's "big players."
  3. Andjelika Martin, the individual responsible for the M Resort Casino's unbeaten cybersecurity 2009-2016, is a convicted felon, offering a compelling narrative about second chances, corporate myopia, and unrecognized expertise.

About the Expert

Andjelika Martin, who has been self-taught since the age of 10, has an impressive background in web marketing and development, particularly in the realm of cybersecurity. She worked for the M Resort Las Vegas from 2008 - 2016 and, during that time, while operating as a department of 1 and working 120-hour weeks, rose from Senior Programmer to Director of Web Marketing and Development and was solely responsible for all Marnell-owned websites and web servers, including the M Resort. She then headed up the Web Department from 2016-2017 at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, now Virgin, and came face to face with the full depth and frequency of the breaches the Hard Rock and others suffered while organizing the clean-up and recovery from their previous breaches. During her tenure there, her defensive skills were called upon again as she safeguarded the Hard Rock during one of the largest DDOS attacks in history on DYN DNS.

Convicted of theft in 2019 from The M Resort and Hard Rock Hotel for $388k, she was sentenced to 5 years of probation and restitution. Martin is currently in talks to adapt her life into a limited T.V. series, tentatively titled "Between Hard Rock & Madness - or How to Get Convicted of Stealing Nearly $400k without Even Trying." She is also working on a forthcoming book on cybersecurity, (wt) "It Takes A Felon," slated for release on November 2. Her story challenges the preconceptions that often limit people who have been through the criminal justice system and reexamines the definitions by asking: "What is a criminal?"

How to Schedule an Interview

For interviews or expert panel discussions with this unique cyber security expert, Andjelika Martin, please contact her directly at andjelika@hardrockandmadness.com or by phone at 702.301.2722. Martin offers a rare perspective on both the technical intricacies of cybersecurity, including the overstated abilities of A.I., and the broader sociopolitical implications of undervaluing our workforce and a justice system that often hampers the very talent it needs.

For more information, please visit AndjelikaMartin.com or HardRockandMadness.com.


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