Online Poker Cheating

Cheating in online poker occurs in one of many forms. Players can engage in cheating using instant messenger or the telephone, where they share information about one another’s hole cards. Additionally, players sometimes cheat by way of collusion when they play in conjunction with one another, trying to raise and reraise to force others out of the hand. Additionally, it is somewhat common for players to utilize more than one online poker account at the same room, many times in the same poker tournament.

While all forms of online poker cheating are unethical and potentially costly for the victims, the most dangerous of the lot are the expert cheaters as they are not only the most profitable cheats, they are the most difficult to detect. In case of minor cheating, the poker room does not worry so much about this as the little bit of information that is exchanged here is seldom useful to the online poker cheat.

Easy online detection for cheats

Although there are so many avenues for online poker cheats, its detection is quite possible online. This is because poker rooms have many cheat and collusion detection techniques like hand histories to use and refer to find out if a player is cheating.

So if a self-colluder uses two computers, two internet connections and two identities for cheating, plays as player X in a game only if player Y is in the same game, a red flag is tripped. Poker cheating using this method implies using different identities in different tables most of the time to avoid detection, which is not always possible.

Poker rooms can see folded hands

Those thinking of cheating absolute poker should be aware of the fact that poker rooms can see all hands folded. So if a player thinks it is possible to go with a King high flush after his partner had folded the ace on the previous round, he has to think twice.

This is because the poker room’s security personnel can easily observe all this. The room’s security personnel will track even players whipsawing opponents.

Poker cheats going unnoticed

There is a possibility of these forms of poker cheats going unnoticed by the poker room security personnel. However if all the cheating was done by the same players, where only one case of cheating gets reported, the poker room security will just look back at their logs to find out when these players had played together.

Even though the ultimate bet cheats may have played together weeks apart, the security personnel can collect these clues and create a clear picture of all the cheating that took place. Poker rooms have a great tool to help them locate all the cheating in the form of the vigilance of honest players. Unlike casinos, honest players in online poker rooms need not provide evidence if they feel a player is cheating, as the hand history is saved by the online poker room.