It's completely natural to be anxious before joining your first online casino. After all, you'll have to make a real-money deposit on an online platform and trust it with your funds. If you are wondering whether online casinos are rigged, we'll provide both a short and a long answer to that question. The short one is — no, they aren't, as long as you stick to licensed and regulated ones.
If that does not convince you, make sure to read this article and find out more about different ways online casinos can be rigged and how to stay away from such platforms.
How Can an Online Casino Be Rigged?
There are many ways to rig an online casino. Simply put, all casino games you play online use sophisticated underlying software. Developers working for reputable online casinos and content providers make sure to write code so that it cannot be tampered with.
All it takes to rig an online casino game is to alter its code so that the game is not fair anymore. Rigged online casinos usually offer games that are identical to the ones in fair and licensed casinos — the only difference is that you don't really have an opportunity to win any money. In other words, you'll pay and not get anything in return.
The probability of winning a prize in a rigged casino is usually much lower due to low RTP percentages.
Lowering the RTP
RTP stands for Return to Player, and it's a figure that shows how much money is returned to players when they make bets. If the RTP is 95%, players should receive $95 for every $100 they invest in online slots. Online casinos and developers will take the remaining $5 as a profit. Naturally, some players will be luckier than others and win bigger prizes, while the less fortunate ones will leave empty-handed.
Online poker is indeed rigged. The sit and go's always finish within 20 minutes. That in itself is suspect. As for the BIG MONEY tournaments, who knows who wins those. And if indeed the winners are just shills that probably get a wage, as they clean out the real money day after day. Online Poker is BULLSHIT!
Nevertheless, the overall distribution of prizes is such that casinos should take only a small portion of invested money while distributing the rest to players.
Rigged casinos often lower the RTP so much that it doesn't pay off to play games. If the RTP is low, the casino will take most of the money you invest and your chances of winning a prize will be extremely low.
- Another notable company 888 Live Blackjack Rigged which develops games for this casino is Play n Go. This developer holds licenses from the UKGC and the MGA, both of which are highly reputable licensing 888 Live Blackjack Rigged bodies. MegaSlot 888 Live Blackjack Rigged casino also uses games that are developed by Amatic.
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- It depends if it's live blackjack or not and what country your playing in. For instance, I live in the U.K. So I know the live games are 100% not rigged. With regards the computer models, they basically have a certain percentage payout and the mac.
How do these casinos set the RTP? The answer is simple — they change the code and do not include the RNG.
RNG Doesn't Work in Rigged Casinos
Every game of chance available in online casinos needs to have a random number generator (RNG). This is a piece of code included in casino games that ensures that they are truly random.
To explain the RNG further, we must first ask you the following question: How does luck work?
Nobody knows. It's a complete mystery to us. The only legitimate answer is to say that luck is a product of the universe being random. Some people are luckier than others when playing casino games. You can look at the outcome of playing games of chance as one way to measure someone's luck.
But how do you know that games are random? The answer is the RNG. Developers made a program that always comes up with entirely random results in games. Therefore, once they set the parameters and insert the RNG in the game, you can rest assured that there are no people on the other side adjusting the outcome — unless you're playing in a rigged casino.
Games in rigged casinos aren't random since they lack one of the essential pieces of software — the random number generator.
How Can I Make Sure That the Casino Is Trustworthy?
One of the safest ways to ensure that a casino is not rigged is to research the web and find additional information about the platform. Many professional reviews will tell you about all the disadvantages and disadvantages related to the platform you want to join.
Alternatively, you can find user opinions about specific sites and gather more info on their trustworthiness. Please note that users sometimes leave negative reviews about casinos and call them rigged simply because they weren't lucky enough. However, if all user reviews agree that a certain casino is rigged, you should definitely think twice before you open an account.
The good thing about the online gambling industry is that rigged platforms have short lifespans. In other words, if someone proves that they are rigged, other players will find that information rather quickly. Such sites are usually then added to blacklists all over the web and players start to avoid them right away. Being busted, rigged online casinos then stop operating as they aren't able to scam people anymore.
Yet, you should still be careful, as online scammers don't give up easily. If their rigged platform is shut down, they often don't hesitate to start the whole process afresh and lure newcomers into giving them their money.
Independent Auditors Ensure Fairness and Trustworthiness
If an online casino claims that it's fair and trustworthy, why should you trust them? After all, they could lie about this and still proceed with illegal operations. That's why independent auditing companies exist.
These are usually companies that are highly reputable as being independent and honest in their reports. They often check online casinos and other gambling platforms for fairness, after which they publish the results. To ensure that a casino is fair, auditors check their random number generators and many other things that help them determine whether a casino is fair and trustworthy.
Companies that are currently considered leaders in the online gambling industry are eCogra, GLI, and iTechLabs. If you find certificates from these auditing firms in an online casino, you don't have to worry.
What Does an Online Licence Provide?
If an online casino lacks a licence provided by an official regulatory body, we advise you to stay away from it. It may not be rigged, but having no licence is not a good sign. Reputable licence providers will never compromise their reputation by giving a licence to a rigged casino. Sure, some casinos become rigged over time, but as soon as regulators find that out, they revoke their licences for that platform.
Who are these regulators? In most cases, they are official commissions that decide who gets a licence. For example, in the UK, the most well-known gambling authority is the United Kingdom Gambling Commission. Casinos licensed by the UKGC need to pass a strict test that ensures no illegal operations are taking place.
There are also a couple of 'global' regulators that license online gambling platforms, such as the Malta Gaming Authority, which is highly respected in the online gambling industry. Therefore, if you access a site and see that it's licensed by the MGA, you can be sure that the casino is fair and trustworthy.
To find out whether an online casino is licensed or not, you should scroll down to the footer of the site, where information about licences is usually provided. You can then check the licence number to make sure that the information is not false.
Apart from licences, it's also important to check who the owner of the casino is. Companies that own online casinos have either a good or bad reputation, and you definitely don't want to play in casinos owned by companies that have a history of running blacklisted casinos.
Casinos Use Cutting-Edge Security Methods to Protect Themselves and Their Users
Even legitimate online casinos can become rigged if they fall into the wrong hands. For example, they could undergo a cyberattack and hackers could rig games in some way. Luckily, that almost never happens nowadays.
All reputable online casinos use state-of-the-art technologies that make sure nobody can tamper with the games. Moreover, these technologies protect users, their sensitive data, and their funds from all kinds of cyberattacks. For example, every casino needs to use SSL (Secure Socket Layer) encryption to ensure secure communication.
Conclusion — Research Before Signing Up
We live in the day and age where information travels fast, which is why it's pretty easy to spot a rigged online casino. They don't have any security measures, licences, RNGs, and many other things required to operate properly.
However sophisticated, rigged casinos are fairly easy to see through, and that's why we highly advise you to explore the site before joining it. If you're still not sure, feel free to read reviews provided by casino experts and users. They'll provide you with vital information about the site you're considering, including whether it's rigged or not.
Related Articles
16:4119 Oct
A detailed report has appeared online which alleges serious security breaches at Bovada Poker, and claims that millions may have been siphoned from the site by some form of ‘super-user' accounts coupled with the use of bots. This raises the question: is Bovada poker rigged?
The fantastical claims have been made by an anonymous team whose members 'span industries including gaming, advertising, data mining, open source software development, security, and database solutions,' according to the report from dataminepoker.
They claim that:
'Based on all of the separate tests completed by our contracting team, it is evident that there are massive issues at Bovada Poker. There are issues with the number of multi large hands, collusion teams, and bots.'
Factors which they also allege they were able to exploit themselves on Bovada in trials afterwards, stating:
All of these situations were proven through data collection, analysis, and then using the techniques ourselves to increase our ability to win over average players.'
Online poker has always had more than its fair share of ‘paranoia' among its players, usually based on the ‘luck' factor which can see players run bad, suffer multiple bad beats, lose to ‘ridiculous' plays by their opponents and then use the online community forums as a ‘sounding-off board' for their tale of ‘rigged' online poker-rooms.
Indeed, the DataMinePoker team describe such ‘paranoia' as one of their starting points, saying:
As part of the initial research for this project, multiple online forums and gambling related social networks were combed for stories based on the potential unfairness of the Bovada Poker room. Based on the data collection of public posts within the past year, 1,461 separate stories of single or multi hand suspicious activity at Bovada Poker were found, collected, and verified.'
However, such ‘paranoia' is not always mis-placed. The Ultimate Bet scandal of 2007 became the biggest in poker's history when it was discovered that a ‘super-user' account was being used, enabling the user to play in ‘God-mode' with the ability to view other players hole cards, and winning millions of dollars from unsuspecting victims.
More recently, PokerStars investigated an alleged ‘bot ring' emanating from Eastern Europe which was apparently exploiting their low-to-mid stakes PLO games, with many players being recompensed by the industry leader following their probe.
Whether or not these most recent allegations involving Bovada have any truth to them, the scale of the report – which DataMinePoker claim is only an initial public report, with secondary, more detailed, reports to come – is impressive.
After analyzing the Bovada Poker Mac and Windows applications, it was decided that these software applications were fairly secure and would require an advanced visual recognition system to collect the data required.'
Although extremely detailed, with mathematical models, hand-history reading scripts and coding (which are beyond this writer's ken , but will doubtless be subject to intense scrutiny by many online aficionados of the game and its perceived unfairness) the core results of the report allege that:
- There is a massive problem where users are being edge-cased in big hands that they tend to lose a large pot over.
- Our team can easily confirm that Bovada Poker is a haven for collusion activity.
- It was determined that there are zero counter measures against bots and no front end way to try and detect bots/injectable systems.
Report states that:
These problems could be linked to a rogue employee(s) or hacker group that may have compromised the random number generator and shuffling algorithms used by the poker room software. It is also possible that this is a coincidental mistake made by the initial programmers of the random number generator/shuffling algorithms.'
A third possibility does not seem to have found any real substance during their ‘research', the team stating:
Another, less likely possibility, is that Bovada is knowingly using their own software loophole to steal large amounts of user money,' as they later reveal that 'From our base analysis…what occurred at Absolute/Ultimate Bet is not occurring on Bovada Poker in a noticeable way.'
The report also states that one of the difficulties they faced in compiling the report was the fact that Bovada is a private poker room, and they also point out:
Since Bovada Poker is not located within the United States, it is confirmed that the software has not readily been verified by the Nevada Gaming Commission or related American gaming control boards.'
Companies that are currently considered leaders in the online gambling industry are eCogra, GLI, and iTechLabs. If you find certificates from these auditing firms in an online casino, you don't have to worry.
What Does an Online Licence Provide?
If an online casino lacks a licence provided by an official regulatory body, we advise you to stay away from it. It may not be rigged, but having no licence is not a good sign. Reputable licence providers will never compromise their reputation by giving a licence to a rigged casino. Sure, some casinos become rigged over time, but as soon as regulators find that out, they revoke their licences for that platform.
Who are these regulators? In most cases, they are official commissions that decide who gets a licence. For example, in the UK, the most well-known gambling authority is the United Kingdom Gambling Commission. Casinos licensed by the UKGC need to pass a strict test that ensures no illegal operations are taking place.
There are also a couple of 'global' regulators that license online gambling platforms, such as the Malta Gaming Authority, which is highly respected in the online gambling industry. Therefore, if you access a site and see that it's licensed by the MGA, you can be sure that the casino is fair and trustworthy.
To find out whether an online casino is licensed or not, you should scroll down to the footer of the site, where information about licences is usually provided. You can then check the licence number to make sure that the information is not false.
Apart from licences, it's also important to check who the owner of the casino is. Companies that own online casinos have either a good or bad reputation, and you definitely don't want to play in casinos owned by companies that have a history of running blacklisted casinos.
Casinos Use Cutting-Edge Security Methods to Protect Themselves and Their Users
Even legitimate online casinos can become rigged if they fall into the wrong hands. For example, they could undergo a cyberattack and hackers could rig games in some way. Luckily, that almost never happens nowadays.
All reputable online casinos use state-of-the-art technologies that make sure nobody can tamper with the games. Moreover, these technologies protect users, their sensitive data, and their funds from all kinds of cyberattacks. For example, every casino needs to use SSL (Secure Socket Layer) encryption to ensure secure communication.
Conclusion — Research Before Signing Up
We live in the day and age where information travels fast, which is why it's pretty easy to spot a rigged online casino. They don't have any security measures, licences, RNGs, and many other things required to operate properly.
However sophisticated, rigged casinos are fairly easy to see through, and that's why we highly advise you to explore the site before joining it. If you're still not sure, feel free to read reviews provided by casino experts and users. They'll provide you with vital information about the site you're considering, including whether it's rigged or not.
Related Articles
16:4119 Oct
A detailed report has appeared online which alleges serious security breaches at Bovada Poker, and claims that millions may have been siphoned from the site by some form of ‘super-user' accounts coupled with the use of bots. This raises the question: is Bovada poker rigged?
The fantastical claims have been made by an anonymous team whose members 'span industries including gaming, advertising, data mining, open source software development, security, and database solutions,' according to the report from dataminepoker.
They claim that:
'Based on all of the separate tests completed by our contracting team, it is evident that there are massive issues at Bovada Poker. There are issues with the number of multi large hands, collusion teams, and bots.'
Factors which they also allege they were able to exploit themselves on Bovada in trials afterwards, stating:
All of these situations were proven through data collection, analysis, and then using the techniques ourselves to increase our ability to win over average players.'
Online poker has always had more than its fair share of ‘paranoia' among its players, usually based on the ‘luck' factor which can see players run bad, suffer multiple bad beats, lose to ‘ridiculous' plays by their opponents and then use the online community forums as a ‘sounding-off board' for their tale of ‘rigged' online poker-rooms.
Indeed, the DataMinePoker team describe such ‘paranoia' as one of their starting points, saying:
As part of the initial research for this project, multiple online forums and gambling related social networks were combed for stories based on the potential unfairness of the Bovada Poker room. Based on the data collection of public posts within the past year, 1,461 separate stories of single or multi hand suspicious activity at Bovada Poker were found, collected, and verified.'
However, such ‘paranoia' is not always mis-placed. The Ultimate Bet scandal of 2007 became the biggest in poker's history when it was discovered that a ‘super-user' account was being used, enabling the user to play in ‘God-mode' with the ability to view other players hole cards, and winning millions of dollars from unsuspecting victims.
More recently, PokerStars investigated an alleged ‘bot ring' emanating from Eastern Europe which was apparently exploiting their low-to-mid stakes PLO games, with many players being recompensed by the industry leader following their probe.
Whether or not these most recent allegations involving Bovada have any truth to them, the scale of the report – which DataMinePoker claim is only an initial public report, with secondary, more detailed, reports to come – is impressive.
After analyzing the Bovada Poker Mac and Windows applications, it was decided that these software applications were fairly secure and would require an advanced visual recognition system to collect the data required.'
Although extremely detailed, with mathematical models, hand-history reading scripts and coding (which are beyond this writer's ken , but will doubtless be subject to intense scrutiny by many online aficionados of the game and its perceived unfairness) the core results of the report allege that:
- There is a massive problem where users are being edge-cased in big hands that they tend to lose a large pot over.
- Our team can easily confirm that Bovada Poker is a haven for collusion activity.
- It was determined that there are zero counter measures against bots and no front end way to try and detect bots/injectable systems.
Report states that:
These problems could be linked to a rogue employee(s) or hacker group that may have compromised the random number generator and shuffling algorithms used by the poker room software. It is also possible that this is a coincidental mistake made by the initial programmers of the random number generator/shuffling algorithms.'
A third possibility does not seem to have found any real substance during their ‘research', the team stating:
Another, less likely possibility, is that Bovada is knowingly using their own software loophole to steal large amounts of user money,' as they later reveal that 'From our base analysis…what occurred at Absolute/Ultimate Bet is not occurring on Bovada Poker in a noticeable way.'
The report also states that one of the difficulties they faced in compiling the report was the fact that Bovada is a private poker room, and they also point out:
Since Bovada Poker is not located within the United States, it is confirmed that the software has not readily been verified by the Nevada Gaming Commission or related American gaming control boards.'
That's something which they claim led them to initial suspicions that the poker room 'may have potential security risks not checked by adequate control boards,' a belief which they allege their report confirms as having led to serious cheating issues and which – somewhat confusingly it may seem to many, 'show that Bovada Poker is operating an unfair poker room (even while passing modern gambling software verification tests).'
They also claim their team is creating security on other online sites including alongside Bovada including:
- America's Card Room
- BetOnline
- Sports Betting.ag
- Black Chip
- Carbon
Following these separate public reports, a large centralized report with access to all open source software tools, collection data, and image/video evidence will be released at once.
Whether this report turns out to contain any real issues of substance or not, the timing is not particularly good for the online gaming industry in general, coming in the wake of investigations into, and restrictions on, DFS and at a time when the big poker sites are doggedly clawing their way back into the US markets state-by-state.
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It should be noted however that Bovada is, according to their own website, operated by Salmon River Technologies Ltd ('Salmon River Technologies Ltd', pursuant to a gaming license issued by the Kahnawake Gaming Commission, located in the Mohawk Territory of Kahnawake, Canada).
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PokerTube will bring you responses from Bovada and any other interested parties as soon as they become available.
