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The online casino industry goes hand-in-hand with the most advanced technology. And unquestionably, technology has been a contributing factor to its success and strengthening casino security. Over the years, casinos have grown both in popularity and in number. You can find countless brick and mortar casinos all over the world. And as technology advances and casinos become more widely accepted, they have found their way into the worldwide web. You can choose from hundreds of online casinos. Most of these sites are accessible in virtually every country.
Considering its immense popularity, casinos have become a target of scammers, fraudsters, and other sorts of criminals. These include casino staff who rips off their clients, players who try to cheat at casino games, as well as third-party individuals who scam players and operators alike. Physical casinos have always made an effort to use the best available technology to ensure the security of both their players and their business. Like their digital counterpart, they employ cutting-edge technology to safeguard financial transactions and guarantee fair play.
As fraudsters become more creative, security experts found themselves in a constant race against criminals who are working double-time to break every security measure in place. Below you can read about the most widely used security technologies by both online and land-based casinos. These innovations deliver a more exciting and secure gambling experience.
How Technology Helps Bolster Online Casino Security
Nowadays, you no longer have to leave the comfort of your home to play your favorite casino games. Online gambling is so popular due to its accessibility and convenience. The sector has hugely benefitted from technological advancements such as augmented and virtual reality as well as artificial intelligence. Mobile technology has enabled it to reach more individuals across the globe.
As transactions become digital, you can’t ignore the fact that they pose risks. A lot of fraudulent activities happen online. But the good news is that technology can help bolster the security of your favorite online casino and other gambling sites. Here’s a rundown of its contributions:
Website Security
Online casinos take pride in data encryption, a technology that helps secure your transactions on their website. There are various ways to ensure that a site is secure. Firstly, check the padlock icon on the address bar on the website. Clicking on the padlock icon would show you that your connection is secure. It also allows you to see the license and cookies the online casino use.
Website URL is also something to look at. If it uses “Https” instead of “Http,” that means the casino site is secure with an SSL Certificate. You have the assurance that all your data is safe as it passes from your browser to the server.
When it comes to online casino security, technology plays a significant role. Security software is in place to ensure that it is safe to transact on a site. Online transactions used to be a scary thing since online security wasn’t as robust before. But thanks to technological advancements, it’s now generally safe. You only have to check if you’re dealing with a licensed online casino.
Fair Gameplay
Fair gameplay is part and parcel of safe online casino gambling. Credits again to technology, online casino games employ software that makes every gameplay clean and secure. Take, for example, online slot machines, which use a Random Number Generator (RNG) to generate random results. That assures you that the casino cannot manipulate the outcome.
The same goes for card and table games that require shuffling. All the cards are random. You or the virtual dealer can’t choose the cards you’ll get. The RNG ensures the randomness of results. If you still have trust issues, you may opt to play live dealer games in which a live dealer shuffles cards.
Payment Security
Online transactions often refer to making a payment. For online casinos and players, it involves making a deposit and cashing out your winnings. Nowadays, technology enables online casinos to support different secure payment methods. You may transact with your bank card or even cryptocurrencies and digital wallets if you don’t want to disclose baking details.
Both cryptocurrencies and digital wallets resulted from technological advancements in the digital payment sector. Virtual wallets like Skrill and PayPal make transactions more secure. They only team up with reliable and licensed casinos.
Many online players also use cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, and Ripple due to security and convenience. They don’t require banking details, and you only need a wallet address to transact.
How Technology Strengthens Land Casino Security
At any brick and mortar casino, their staff acts as the first line of defense. In the past, they have generally done an excellent job of deterring any attempt at fraud, cheating, and other illicit activities. But as modern technology progresses, the human factor has become less relevant. Physical casinos had to employ more sophisticated technologies to ensure security. Below are some ways brick and mortar casinos maintain the fairness, safety, and fun of the gambling experience.
Smart Chips
While casino chips hold no value in the outside world, they still rule supreme in physical casinos as the main currency. They are so precious that scammers often bring counterfeit chips in an attempt to exchange them for cash by pretending to score a win.
The good news is that security technologies have provided casinos with a solution in the form of smart chips. Regular casino chips typically contain the casino logo, a serial number, and a stamp. With smart chips, they emit a radio frequency signal recognizable by the machine at the cash-in booth. Hence, the immediate detection of fake chips. Moreover, the frequency of stolen chips is changeable to avoid exchanging them at a later time.
Some fraudsters try to change the denomination of chips in your bet. They raise the value of winning bets or lower the value of losing bets. This modus operandi works because scammers manage to deceive even the most vigilant of dealers. However, smart chips enable tracking of the actual size of bets. Meaning, even the tiniest detail on every table is being monitored at all times. That makes switching chip denominations virtually impossible.
License Plate and Face Recognition System
In this day and age of technology, security at physical casinos begins in the parking lot. As soon as your vehicle enters the casino premises, optical sensors will photograph your license plate, convert it into text, and then run it through a database to check if it’s a hot number. Hot numbers include those that are on the casino’s list of fraudsters and problematic customers. When casino scanners identify cars with hot numbers, they can be flagged for previous offenses. Security officers are alerted, and the offender will be restricted access to the casino.
In case a hot number escapes recognition, face recognition systems enter the picture. Everyone who enters a casino passes through a scanner for security purposes. Modern face recognition systems allow for instant comparison of scanned faces against a database of fraudsters. That way, authorities easily recognize cheaters.
Marked Cards
For whatever reason, baccarat has been a magnet for gambling scandals, especially in Asia. Fraudsters usually switch cards to get ahead in the game. To address that, casinos decided to deal marked cards to players. These cards contain barcodes for tracking by a system called “angel eye.” Essentially, angel eye technology is camera-based, just like license recognition and face recognition systems. But the angel eye’s underlying technology goes beyond merely tracking each marked card. It is also capable of simulating the game’s outcome.
If the system detects any discrepancy or that at least one marked card is no longer in play, it will alert the security personnel. Of course, it is not exclusive to baccarat. The technology also sees usage in other casino card games to ensure security.
Being in Charge of Your Security
Of course, casinos make every effort to adopt security technologies to protect themselves and their players from fraud. However, you can’t put all the responsibility on the casino operators’ shoulders. You also have a significant role to play, especially regarding online security.
Going for the most attractive no-deposit online casino can be tempting. However, it’s worth noting that doing due diligence is as important. You must ensure that your chosen casino has excellent security credentials.
Practically all physical and online casinos have a website you can check. See what information they have as to existing security measures. You may also visit independent review sites to know what individuals say about the casino you’re interested in. Ultimately, ensure that your preferred casino has a license to operate in your country. In case something goes wrong while you’re playing at an unlicensed site, you’ll have no recourse. That’s why it is essential to guard your safety.
If you’re looking to play poker, slots, baccarat, or other casino games on your smartphone, you must adhere to some basic safety rules. First things first, ensure that you’re playing on a secure and stable connection. Make sure that it isn’t going to drop abruptly at some point. Also, you would do well to avoid saving your passwords in autofill, even if you’re the only one using that gadget. You can’t discount the possibility that it can be stolen or lost. Ultimately, practice caution. Always log out of the app or your account after a gaming session.
