Cheating in casinos refers to actions by the player or the house which are prohibited by regional gambling control authorities. This may involve using suspect apparatus, interfering with apparatus, chip fraud or misrepresenting games. The formally prescribed sanctions for
cheating
Cheating generally describes various actions designed to subvert rules in order to obtain unfair advantages. This includes acts of bribery, cronyism and nepotism in any situation where individuals are given preference using inappropriate cr ...
depend on the circumstances and gravity of the cheating and the
jurisdiction
Jurisdiction (from Latin 'law' + 'declaration') is the legal term for the legal authority granted to a legal entity to enact justice. In federations like the United States, areas of jurisdiction apply to local, state, and federal levels.
Jur ...
in which the casino operates. In
Nevada
Nevada ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. N ...
, for a player to cheat in a casino is a
felony
A felony is traditionally considered a crime of high seriousness, whereas a misdemeanor is regarded as less serious. The term "felony" originated from English common law (from the French medieval word "félonie") to describe an offense that resu ...
under Nevada law. In most other jurisdictions, specific
statute
A statute is a formal written enactment of a legislative authority that governs the legal entities of a city, state, or country by way of consent. Typically, statutes command or prohibit something, or declare policy. Statutes are rules made by le ...
s do not exist, and alleged instances of cheating are resolved by the gambling authority who may have more or less authority to enforce its verdict.
Advantage play
Advantage gambling, or advantage play, refers to legal methods used to gain an advantage while gambling, in contrast to cheating. The term usually refers to house-banked casino games, but can also refer to games played against other players, suc ...
techniques are not cheating.
Card counting
Card counting is a blackjack strategy used to determine whether the player or the dealer has an advantage on the next hand. Card counters are advantage players who try to overcome the casino house edge by keeping a running count of high and low ...
, for example, is a legitimate advantage play strategy that can be employed in
blackjack
Blackjack (formerly Black Jack and Vingt-Un) is a casino banking game. The most widely played casino banking game in the world, it uses decks of 52 cards and descends from a global family of casino banking games known as Twenty-One. This fami ...
and other
card games
A card game is any game using playing cards as the primary device with which the game is played, be they traditional or game-specific.
Countless card games exist, including families of related games (such as poker). A small number of card ga ...
. In almost all jurisdictions, casinos are permitted to ban from their premises customers they believe are using advantage play, regardless of whether they are in fact doing so and even though it is not cheating, though this practice of barring law-abiding citizens from public places is subject to judicial review. So far, courts in New Jersey and
North Las Vegas, Nevada
North Las Vegas is a suburban city in Clark County, Nevada, United States, in the Las Vegas Valley. As of the 2010 census it had a population of 216,961, with an estimated population of 251,974 in 2019. The city was incorporated on May 1, 19 ...
have found the practice of barring law-abiding citizens to be illegal.
Online casinos are also vulnerable to certain cheating methods. In the early 2000s, some players discovered that the
random number generator
Random number generation is a process by which, often by means of a random number generator (RNG), a sequence of numbers or symbols that cannot be reasonably predicted better than by random chance is generated. This means that the particular out ...
at one poker site did not produce truly random sets of "decks", and instead chose from about only 200,000 different possible deck configurations. Generation of true random numbers by machines continues to be
difficult. This allowed the players to know what flop was coming if they knew the hands being held by three players.
Methods of cheating by players
![Kepplinger holdout machine example](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a6/Kepplinger_holdout_machine_example.png)
The methods for cheating in a casino are often specific to individual games and include the following:
*
Past posting: After a bet is won, a player replaces smaller-denomination chips with large-denomination chips.
*Hand mucking: Palming desirable cards, then switching them for less desirable cards that the gambler holds.
*Using a "
holdout" device to remove a card from the game until needed at a later time.
*
Card marking
Card marking is the process of altering playing cards in a method only apparent to marker or conspirator, such as by bending or adding visible marks to a card. This allows different methods for card sharps to cheat or for magicians to perform magi ...
: Various methods exist to mark cards during play.
*Marked decks: Usually involving the collusion of casino employees, it may be possible for a marked deck to be introduced into play. There are many different ways to mark decks of cards, some of them very difficult to detect. Casinos often replace their cards at table games and either sell or give away the used decks. These decks are usually cut or altered before they are sold or given away. This is to prevent cheaters from buying used decks and then using the cards to cheat at table games.
*
Slot machine
A slot machine (American English), fruit machine (British English) or poker machine (Australian English and New Zealand English) is a gambling machine that creates a game of chance for its customers. Slot machines are also known pejoratively a ...
s: Methods exist for altering the outcome of slot machine games.
*
Collusion
Collusion is a deceitful agreement or secret cooperation between two or more parties to limit open competition by deceiving, misleading or defrauding others of their legal right. Collusion is not always considered illegal. It can be used to att ...
: In poker games, the practice of two partners signaling to each other the values of their cards can be very difficult to detect. Also, in
table games, players can collude with the dealer.
*Using auxiliary devices: In Nevada, New Jersey, and other jurisdictions, using any device which helps to forecast the odds or aid in a legitimate strategy such as
card counting
Card counting is a blackjack strategy used to determine whether the player or the dealer has an advantage on the next hand. Card counters are advantage players who try to overcome the casino house edge by keeping a running count of high and low ...
is regarded as cheating.
*Top hats: In
roulette
Roulette is a casino game named after the French word meaning ''little wheel'' which was likely developed from the Italian game Biribi''.'' In the game, a player may choose to place a bet on a single number, various groupings of numbers, the ...
, players place a bet after the ball has landed. The chips are disguised using a third party's chip - the "top hat".
*Using a computer to gain an edge, illegal in Nevada since 1985.
Methods of cheating by casinos
*Using a rigged roulette wheel.
*False deals: A dealer may be able to deal the second card from the top (used in conjunction with marked cards), or the ability to deal the bottom card of the deck (used in conjunction with placing desirable cards at the bottom of the deck), see for example
Mechanic's grip
The mechanic's grip is one of many ways to comfortably hold a deck of cards.
The standard grip taught in many dealer schools around the world, it is also widely used by magicians and card cheaters as it provides a sturdy and versatile means by ...
.
*False shuffles and cuts: A dealer may seem to mix or cut the cards, while retaining certain cards or the whole deck in a desired order.
*Using a deck of cards with non-standard composition.
*Using a
cold deck.
*Using
loaded dice
Dice (singular die or dice) are small, throwable objects with marked sides that can rest in multiple positions. They are used for generating random values, commonly as part of tabletop games, including dice games, board games, role-playing ga ...
.
*Using rulesets not sanctioned by a gambling control authority.
*Using slot machines which pay lower than the statutory minimum.
*
False advertising
False advertising is defined as the act of publishing, transmitting, or otherwise publicly circulating an advertisement containing a false claim, or statement, made intentionally (or recklessly) to promote the sale of property, goods, or servic ...
by not paying advertised promotions.
*
Mail fraud
Mail fraud and wire fraud are terms used in the United States to describe the use of a physical or electronic mail system to defraud another, and are federal crimes there. Jurisdiction is claimed by the federal government if the illegal activit ...
or sending a mail offer but not honoring the offer once the customer is at the casino, also called
bait and switch
Bait-and-switch is a form of fraud used in retail sales but also employed in other contexts. First, customers are "baited" by merchants' advertising products or services at a low price, but when customers visit the store, they discover that the a ...
.
*Rigged
video poker
Video poker is a casino game based on five-card draw poker. It is played on a computerized console similar in size to a slot machine.
History
Video poker first became commercially viable when it became economical to combine a television-like moni ...
machines, such as the Vegas "American Coin Scandal"
*Rigged drawings, such as at
The Venetian, Las Vegas
The Venetian Las Vegas is a luxury hotel and casino resort located on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada, United States, on the site of the old Sands Hotel. Designed by KlingStubbins, the hotel tower contains 36 stories and rises . The Veneti ...
.
*Corrupt regulators, such as
Ronald Dale Harris
Ronald Dale Harris is a computer programmer who worked for the Nevada Gaming Control Board in the early 1990s and was responsible for finding flaws and gaffes in software that runs computerized casino games. Harris took advantage of his expertis ...
.
*Using a computer to gain an edge over the players.
Prevention of cheating
![CasinoCards](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/22/CasinoCards.jpg)
Cheating can be reduced by employing "proper procedure" - certain standardized ways of shuffling cards, dealing cards, storing, retrieving and opening new decks of cards.
Most casinos are obliged to have an extensive array of
security cameras
Closed-circuit television (CCTV), also known as video surveillance, is the use of video cameras to transmit a signal to a specific place, on a limited set of monitors. It differs from broadcast television in that the signal is not openly t ...
and recorders which monitor and record all the action in a casino, which can be used to resolve some disputes. Some casinos use
facial recognition software
A facial recognition system is a technology capable of matching a human face from a digital image or a video frame against a database of faces. Such a system is typically employed to authenticate users through ID verification services, and wo ...
to detect known cheats and criminals.
See also
*
Cheating in baseball
Forms of cheating in baseball, deliberate violations of the game's rules or other behavior designed to gain an unfair advantage against an opponent, include doctoring the ball, doctoring bats, electronic sign stealing, and the use of performan ...
*
Cheating in chess
Cheating in chess is a deliberate violation of the rules of chess or other behaviour that is intended to give an unfair advantage to a player or team. Cheating can occur in many forms and can take place before, during, or after a game. Commonly c ...
*
Cheating in poker
Cheating in poker is any behavior outside the rules of poker that is intended to give an unfair advantage to one or more players.
Minimal-skill methods
The easiest and most common types of cheating require no skill of manipulation, but rather me ...
*
Casino security
Casino security refers to the measures that are taken at casinos to protect the establishment's money, property and patrons. The security protects the casino and its customers from violent crime, theft, and other inappropriate behavior.
Given the ...
References
{{reflist
Casinos
Cheating in gambling