AbsolutePoker.com is a leading Internet poker site based in Costa Rica. Recently, an employee of the company hacked the system so that he could see his oponents’ hole cards in a high-stakes, no-limit game of Texas hold ‘em.
The hacker’s illegitimate winnings are estimated at up to $700,000. But none of the ill-gotten cash was actually withdrawn from his account.
The company acknowledged the security breach, and claimed it has now plugged it. It is also working on fixing its internal communications, so that these scams do not escape its notice in the future.
It also promised to refund all money to the victims of the scheme.
So why and how did the employee do it? Apparently he wanted to prove it could be done, and that management was wrong to assume the system was secure. He seems to have used an internal AbsolutePoker account created during the testing or beta phase.
When these allegations first surfaced the company denied any cheating occurred, and even claimed it was impossible. When confronted with clear evidence from complaining victims and independent experts, the company changed its tune.
AbsolutePoker is owned by members of the Kahnawake Mohawk tribe in Quebec, Canada. If you play poker or bet online, take note.
Syd Tash is a noted computer security consultant and author of How to Protect Your Computer Online. He has been keeping Internet surfers safe and secure since the last century. Find out how he does it; protect your own computer with five layers of protection right here: => http://MyPCSecuritySite.com
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