Casino fraud and theft continues to increase - are operators switched on to the threats?
The Robin Hood tales of clever, lovable rogues outwitting the big, bad casino owners to make off with money that no one will really miss are myths. Fraud and theft badly impact casino operations, as they would any business. As the industry strives to recover from the economic and financial difficulties of the last few years, it has also had to contend with a rise in the number of casino scams. Protecting the business from the threats that walk in off the street is now of the utmost importance.
There is a difference, said Jim Pepin of Biometrica, between casinos meeting the minimum surveillance obligations and those that employ the level of surveillance that addresses their actual needs.
“We find that many, maybe even most casinos, do understand the risks but there are still too many casinos that seem to not be focused on proactively addressing those risks but rather conduct their surveillance operation by simply making sure they meet the very minimum surveillance coverage as required by their jurisdiction's codes and regulation,” he told InterGaming.
And there are a lot of risks. There are stories of casino theft and fraud in the mainstream press every few days - but those are the ones we hear about. Every day, the industry faces a multitude of threats from those intent on profiting from them illegally. The fact that casinos are now able to deploy a host of surveillance and security measures does not appear to deter such criminals.
According to Pepin, whose company develops surveillance software, the industry now faces more threats than ever before.
“The difficult economy today seems to have resulted in an increase of all types of persons trying to take advantage of casinos,” he said. “These include card counters and advantage play teams, as well as slot cheats and table cheats.”
Biometrica's VisualCasino modular games protection software provides a configurable surveillance solution. Modules include the Surveillance Information Network that connects more than 170 casinos and gaming enforcement agencies, the Casino Information Database, which contains data and thousands of photos of known casino 'undesirables' and an effective Face Recognition Module that enables casinos to identify patrons by utilising images from various sources. The company has also developed a NameGame module that helps improve identification skills for casino staff, particularly surveillance, security and table games managers.
“What is most vital is a better understanding by top casino management as to what extent surveillance can proactively positively impact the casino's profit,” Pepin explained. “Its potential is often underestimated.”
With card benders, switchers and markers, dealer scammers, counterfeiters, credit card fraudsters and thieves, casinos need to be switched on to the challenges they face, like any other market.
Konrad Hechtbauer, director of project and application development at video surveillance specialist Dallmeier, told InterGaming that ever-more complex criminal activities need equally advanced solutions.
“There is a kind of 'arms race' between manufacturers of security technology, which is becoming increasingly more powerful, and fraudsters, who devise ever more sophisticated techniques,” he said. “This is where we come into play, as we are continuously working on new technologies and further developments of existing products in order to keep security systems up to date and remain one step ahead of criminals.”
Dallmeier develops and manufactures network-based video surveillance with integrated components for video systems from a single source, from cameras, recorders, storage systems and video management, up to intelligent video analysis. Its products are adjusted to the needs of casinos and its latest innovation, the multi-sensor Panomera camera system, makes it possible to survey a huge area from a single location.
“The main areas that are monitored with CCTV are the gaming area,” said Hechtbauer, “with its gambling tables and slot machines, and all areas where money changes hands. So far, most casinos use video surveillance mainly for documentation purposes rather than a proactive mode of operation. Whether a fraud can be caught in the act is often a matter of chance as it depends on the security personnel viewing the right scene at the right time or the vigilance of the croupier who will alert them.”
In most cases, he explained, frauds are detected after the event. Video surveillance is used to identify the perpetrator and secure footage of them in case they return. Naturally, this means that the initial fraud and financial loss was not prevented.
“That is why the trend in video surveillance is towards 'intelligence',” he said. “That is the intelligent analysis of image data that allows casinos to detect irregularities and prevent possible frauds in advance. Thereby the video system is integrated into the other casino management and gambling systems. The data from the different systems are no longer treated individually but are bundled together to allow for comprehensive analyses.”
On the floor itself, systems developer Advansys aims to provide casinos with a comprehensive gaming floor management solution - FloorScanner. Its primary function is to handle the fiscal information and gather other important data from the casino floor, both from slots and tables, and present it to the management. It is an advanced system that integrates the company's SlotScanner slot management and TablesScanner table management systems that control daily casino operations and support administration of slots and tables, regardless of location and number.
“The Accounting and Cage module keeps casino operations automated, optimised and under control at any moment,” Advansys' Tina Stolfa told InterGaming. This is achieved, she explained, by physically connecting all the slot machines on the floor with the floor sever, extracting the important information and sending this to the database for processing. A small processor called an iDevice is implanted into the machines and directly linked to the main board. The iDevice collects and channels information that can be used by the Accounting and Cage module to provide different tools that can be accessed across a host of interfaces.
“It enables casinos to control, monitor and analyse the financial, security, maintenance and activity issues of each and every one of their slot machines and live tables,” Stolfa continued. “FloorScanner is a powerful, modular, top-of-the-line casino management system bringing total control and increased profitability.”
Funding personnel training and employing more effective games protection technology is just one element of the surveillance process that can be developed further. Another, said Biometrica's Pepin, is co-operation.
“One area of improvement is to keep abreast of the latest scams and cheating technologies as well as which undesirables are most active. Sometimes a casino gets too self-centred about this and undervalues and misses the benefits of interacting with their neighbouring casinos and various casino surveillance organisations that could be of significant help to them.”
To that end, the company has released its sixth generation of VisualCasino software, following two years of development. Completely re-writing its popular software, the new release brings a raft of new improvements.
“We continually strive to remain the industry standard in games protection and information management by making sure we always listen to our clients and respond with the most effective new technologies,” Pepin added.
For Dallmeier, the goal has been to 'free' surveillance staff away from simply watching video screens for hours on end to enable them to detect fraud as it happens.
“The technology, so to speak, takes over the 'preliminary work' and selects and directs the attention to specific issues in a targeted manner, which means that many more cases of fraud are detected than before,” said Hechtbauer. “Most importantly, the fraud is detected as it happens and not afterwards. Anyone who knows how much money casinos lose due to fraud quickly realises how big the financial benefits resulting from such a system are for casinos.”
The reality is, however, that casino cheats will always attempt to steal from casinos. For operators, dealing with the problem intelligently and by utilising these latest technologies can seriously minimise the risks and, ultimately, the financial losses they may have suffered in the past.
“The casino cheaters and advantage players will always be around and continue to develop new methods of attack,” said Pepin. “Many of them are very smart and very creative. Some are very well funded. But word does get around about many casinos having much higher levels of protection than others and that is definitely a deterrent.”
RFID: technology at the table…
Currency security is a high priority for Gaming Partners International, the company's Nicole Grauzer told InterGaming. “We realise the importance for casinos to protect their most valuable asset,” she said.
GPI offers operators several solutions in helping to prevent counterfeit casino currency, starting with a wide range of security features available in its chips, plaques and jetons. These range from laser pigments to UV ink to holograms and even to the chip mold itself. As a provider of RFID, GPI also provides security capabilities that extend beyond the chip itself.
“By integrating casino currency with RFID microchips, casinos can benefit from the security advantages of various RFID products and table gaming accessories,” Grauzer continued.
GPI's Dual Level Chip Tray enables secure protection of casino currency at the gaming table, while delivering real-time chip counting and movement details. This RFID application provides operators with a high level of chip security by offering instant access to their float balance and by continuously tracking all chip tray activities.
The company's Table Top Authenticator, meanwhile, is an RFID solution for operators to quickly identify counterfeit chips. The device accurately reads anywhere from a single chip to three stacks of 20 in seconds, relaying this information to the dealer and pit boss. With GPI's Portable Chip Reader, this process of chip authentication is portable and possible anywhere in the casinos.
According to Grauzer, GPI's patented Chip Inventory System 2.0 “dramatically” increases casino protection from chip counterfeiting and theft. The system tracks and authenticates chips, providing this information to surveillance systems. It offers casinos real-time monitoring and authentication of their inventory, provides instant and accurate validation of chip amounts and serial numbers and is linked automatically to any third-party system, including table management systems.
