Casino Cheating and Blackjack Card Counting

Casinos hate cheaters. It doesn't matter if what they label as "cheating" is really casino cheating or not; blackjack casinos are privately owned facilities and they can kick out anyone that they consider to be a dishonest player. This includes card counting and shuffle tracking experts, the 'heroes' of blackjack.

When you see pit bosses and stickmen lurking about and watching the players, that's because they make sure all is in good order and cheaters are kept out of the house. Among the most monitored places of all are the blackjack tables. It isn't that blackjack can be easily cheated in the strict sense. The problem, for the house, is that blackjack can be manipulated by certain advanced, math-based strategies which give the player an advantage over the dealer (house). That is not actually illegal since these strategies only involve the player's mental abilities; the proper term for this is "advantage gambling." But it is deemed to be casino cheating anyway by the houses. Anyone caught doing such things is either warned to cease or to leave the casino altogether.

Extensive surveillance is used to prevent casino cheating. It isn't hard for an experienced pit boss to spot a card counter. To practice card counting, you have to bet small amounts of money at first and then bet larger amounts when the deck is in your favor, then back to small again when the tide turns. A pit boss would notice that and warn the player to "flat bet" (fixed betting) from then on or risk being barred from the casino. Repeated violation would cause in permanent expulsion.

Other signs of card counting are when the player is unusually quiet (because he or she is counting) or seems to be playing with the same people all the time (teams).

Aside from the pit bosses and other vigilant casino employees, there are also surveillance cameras and private detectives. The Griffin Investigation Company is perhaps the best known detective agency. They were the ones that caught the infamous MIT Blackjack Team. Books that profile known card counters and other advantage gamblers are also available (also from these agencies).

If nothing else stops a particular form of casino cheating, they can always change the rules. When card counting first surfaced, casinos started using multiple decks instead of just single decks to make counting more difficult. Some also pay naturals at 6:5 now instead of 3:2.

Perhaps the deadliest of all methods against casino cheating is technology. The continuous shuffling machines, for example, make card counting and shuffle tracking useless. The reality is, with the advent of computers, video games and now online gambling, the best days of casino cheating may be over. It is getting harder and harder for advantage gamblers to obtain an edge over the house. But there will always be those determined few who manage to find a way around the casinos' security measures and subsequently gain fame and fortune.

Unlike the blackjack tables in a real casino, there are no pitmen or surveillance cameras in an online casino. Players can try beat the system provided the same practices with regards to number of decks and deck shuffling are in place