How Are Players Cheating At Online Poker?

 

For the last decade online poker has changed drastically. The amount of poker players on the internet has increased by an incredible amount, the number of online poker rooms has spiraled out of control and the prize pools for tournaments have blown world records to pieces. With this phenomenal growth comes a phenomenal profit - which always leads to one thing. Corruption. If there's money out there mankind will cheat, beg or steal to get their hands on it. Online poker cheating conspiracies have been plentiful - but how many of these theories are credible?

Poker sites invest massive amounts of money into cheating prevention schemes and anti virus software packages. Any reputable poker site will have a customer support team wanting to know about any foul play at the poker tables. Texas Hold'em seems to be the most lucrative form of poker for these sites, especially at UK online casinos, so players shouldn't ever experience these cheats - but if you do make sure you report them. Online poker should be an enjoyable experience, let's keep it that way!

Hacking - hacking can come in various forms, but the most common types are:

• Trojans - a Trojan is a virus which is disguised as a harmless file, but when the file is executed the virus becomes live.

• Viruses - viruses can cause a whole host of symptoms. A virus is anything which changes software from its normal operating cycle.

• Keyloggers - a keylogger is a software package that monitors and records keystrokes, so player's login details can be found out. Often disguised as a harmless file (Trojan).

Collusion - this is where there are multiple people on the same online poker table working together. It's a form of cheating because the odds are manipulated, as there are 2 players against the other single opponents at the table.

Multi account - where collusion uses multiple people at the same table, 'multi accounting' is one person having multiple avatars at the same poker table.

Poker bots - Online poker cheating has never been easier than this. You can download software packages that will play the whole poker game for you. The reason this is such controversial form of cheating is that the software can make the perfect mathematical decisions based on available information - something that humans can't do (within the decision making period at the poker table).

Inside Job - The infamous Absolute Poker scandal was an 'inside job', where a current or past employee of the firm adds in lines of code to the poker site's software package to give an unfair advantage to a particular player. This form of online poker cheating doesn't happen as often as the others, as a single person can be prosecuted so easily if caught.

This list isn't exhaustive, there are countless ways to manipulate, cheat and swindle internet poker sites - but these are the most common techniques.

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Online Poker Distractions And Aides

Online Poker Distractions And Aides
Every online poker player knows the importance of concentration, however many of these players put themselves in an environment where they will be distracted during tournaments. These tips are aimed at people wanting to make a profit from poker, not people who want to play casually. If you enjoy playing poker for 'fun' then this isn't for you - poker isn't a hobby to me, it's a second income.
Distractions
1. TV. This is a given, if you're watching TV no only can you miss hands being dealt to you, but all the time you are distracted from the poker game you are not picking up on vital information about other players, such as; are they tight, aggressive, loose, passive etc. These are factors that will increase the amount of money you make in online poker, so missing them is not acceptable.
2. Mobile Phone. There's a difference between being not being contactable and being distracted. If you have your phone on silent, you will still see important incoming calls - which is perfectly reasonable. What's not beneficial is texting people small talk or irrelevant things. Consider your time playing poker a job to you, if you take it seriously you will make money from it.
3. Other websites. There are just too many distraction to name on the internet when it comes to websites. From Social Networks to video sites, the internet is full of addictive website which consume our concentration. If needed, change your 'parental' setting to only allow you on certain sites - just for when you're playing online poker.
Poker aides
1. Music. Online poker can be enjoyable with just background music. Some people do find this to be a distraction too, but most good poker players can learn all the information they need about their opponents whilst listening to music.
2. Poker odds calculator. For new players this can be a great tool to help learn the odds for different hands. Once you've mastered the odds your online and offline poker game will be greatly improved, and you won't need to use the calculator anymore!
Distractions when playing poker can be detrimental to your winnings. If you're playing poker casually, there's no problem watching TV etc - it's only if you're serious about making money that it matters. Use these online poker tips for free by using no deposit poker bonuses at the best poker sites on the web, to give you a starting bankroll at no cost to you!

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