It is a tale as old as time. Whenever people gather around to compete for a prize, whether we're talking about sports or poker, you are bound to find at least one person who tries to cheat his way to the top.
Over the years, live and online poker rooms invested a lot of resources to turn venues into safe spaces where people can relax and place bets without the fear of getting conned. And while most security protocols can certainly prevent fraud cases, technology is not bulletproof, and people still find ways to cheat their fellow players.
In an effort to stop cheaters from causing any more damage, US legislators came up with a bill that might be the best way to make it even safer for you to play online poker for real money.
New Poker Legislation Might Stop Cheaters from Playing
Legislators in Nevada have submitted Assembly Bill 380, as Assembly Speaker Steve Yeager took it upon himself to tackle this very important issue while being supported by Sara Cholhagian Ralston, a professional poker player herself.
The politician and attorney, who represents the district where southwestern Las Vegas Valley is located, proposed to promote a bill requiring the Nevada Gaming Control Board to create new regulations to prevent known cheaters from continuing with their scams.
According to the bill, the Gaming Control Board would have to create lists of people who were previously suspended or banned from gaming systems for cheating and make those lists public. Those lists are supposed to list the full name, date of birth, and account handle of the supposed cheaters. However, the bill also states that players would have the right to appeal.
The goal of this bill is to create transparency and promote accountability. Yeager stated that: "When the WSOP or somebody decides that something is egregious enough that they’re going to ban a player, I think the poker community ought to know that".
Nevada already has a List of Excluded Persons, also known as the Black Book. Both the Gaming Control Board and the Nevada Gaming Commission nominate and approve all names listed in the Black Book. However, when it comes to online gambling, there is no knowing who is the person hiding behind their pseudonyms. If the bill moves forward, it will require online poker operators to keep track of all players and provide the authorities with the real names of those who are accused of cheating.
The bill has been referred to the Committee of Judiciary for further review, and no decision has been made as of yet.
The Pros and Cons of Such Online Poker Legislation
The intent of this bill is clear: legislators simply want to make online poker rooms a safer place. If a known cheater joins a new casino, both the staff and the players would be able to take precautions to prevent any mishaps from happening if they are well informed of the situation.
However, the bill also has its limits. For one, it is very hard to define what constitutes cheating when it comes to online poker. If a player is the only one who uses poker tools to make his life easier at the digital tables, is he in the wrong? Also, proving that someone is cheating online is a hard task. Operators would have to be very careful and thorough in their investigations before they can make any type of accusation.
In Conclusion
The Committee of Judiciary has its work cut out for it. Officials now must decide whether the pros of passing the new bill outweigh the cons. Either way, legislators must bear in mind that the goal is to allow players to enjoy the best online poker for real money without a single worry in their minds.