1. MGM RESORTS REVEALS 2019 HACK THAT IMPACTS 10.6 MILLION CUSTOMERS: MGM Resorts International revealed Wednesday that it was the victim of a data breach last year. The hotel and casino company did not divulge the number of customers affected, but Under the Breach, a firm that monitors cyber crimes, said 10.6 million people were affected. The New York Times: “MGM Resorts said the vast majority of those affected had ‘phone book information’ breached such as name, phone number, and address. About 1,300 individuals had more sensitive data—from their driver’s licenses, passports, or military ID cards—exposed, MGM said ... 'We are confident that no financial, payment card or password data was involved in this matter.'”
2. SONY PULLS OUT OF A THIRD EVENT DUE TO CORONAVIRUS CONCERNS: Sony announced Thursday that it's taking a pass on the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco next month due to coronavirus concerns. The decision comes a month after the technology giant said it would skip Los Angeles's E3 convention in June as well as the upcoming PAX East event in Boston this month, also because of coronavirus concerns. The Hollywood Reporter: “‘We have made the difficult decision to cancel our participation in Game Developers Conference due to increasing concerns related to COVID-19 (also known as coronavirus),’ a spokesperson for Sony told gamesindustry.biz. ‘We felt this was the best option as the situation related to the virus and global travel restrictions are changing daily. We are disappointed to cancel our participation, but the health and safety of our global workforce is our highest concern.’”
3. NOTORIOUS RBG RECEIVES LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD IN UNUSUAL CEREMONY: While a fight for the White House raged on Wednesday night during the latest Democratic presidential debate, which was held in Las Vegas, a more upbeat political gathering took place in Washington. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was honored with the DVF Awards' Lifetime Achievement Award for being a trailblazer, contributing to gender equality, and supporting women's issues. Other women were honored for fighting international sex trafficking and for helping prisoners in Mexico. USA Today: “The 11th annual DVF Awards, which are normally in New York and held around springtime, traveled to the capital and were held at the Library of Congress for the first time—all for Ginsburg. Diane von Furstenberg said that in order to honor RBG, they had to work around Ginsburg's schedule. 'I'm so happy we did; it's the least we can do,’ she told USA Today prior to her namesake event.”