Nevada Legislature: Regulators focuses on online gambling as practice grows

The rise in online gambling in Nevada doesn’t just affect casinos — it has forced regulators to focus on cybercrime and other online issues, too.

Nevada Gaming Control Board chairman A.G. Burnett told the Senate Finance Committee Thursday that the department was making restructuring its workforce to better reflect the level of online gambling in the state. The board is moving 10 positions from the investigations division into other departments, including three employees who will now work cybercrime investigations.

Burnett said the new cybercrime investigators are needed because of an increase in online gambling, and the prevalence of Internet-connected devices, like smartphones, used by criminals. He told senators that the shift in positions stems from a decrease in applications and a more effective vetting process.

Burnett also submitted a $4 million budget request to secure the board’s online information system. The regulatory body has launched a multiyear effort to transfer files on individuals, businesses and revenue information from an outdated paper system to an online system.

He said that recent security breaches at large corporations like Sony and Home Depot had him worried about a similar situation happening to his agency.

“I’m extremely concerned that the data could be penetrated and stolen,” he said. “The last thing I want to happen on my watch is for that to happen.”