What's New in the World of Gaming Security?

This year in Vegas yet another edition of the World Gaming Protection Conference was held where stakeholders from the gambling security industry presented innovative solutions and discussed the future of gaming protection.

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Here are four of the more interesting solutions presented at the Expo, followed by a major multi-state gaming security policy that’s been in effect since last year.

Anti-Cheating Surveillance

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One of the talking points during the conference was Las Vegas-based Dallmeier Electronic USA’s anti-cheating black-jack system.

The solution comes with several functionalities, with the main features being its capability to recognize cards and bet placements and follow table win/loss ratio thereby detecting irregularities.

Also, dealers can wear special shoes that connect to the system and improve its accuracy; and if used with RFID chips, the company claims its solution is over 90% accurate.

In fact, the system is already in use in Macau, and it's expected to be implemented somewhere in Vegas this year.

The main benefit of Dallmeier Electronic’s solution is that it can monitor tables without the need for sending casino employees. The company’s president said there are other possibilities for the system, including monitoring how well casino comps are performing in relation to customer loyalty.

Threat Detection

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Physical security of casinos and their patrons and staff was one of the main talking points during the WGPC Expo.

Security company Athena Security presented a surveillance solution that uses video streaming and AI to detect gun threats and other security breaches.

The system can then alert the authorities, providing them with accurate information about the type and location of the problem.

Also, the software can detect scuffles, fights, and even cries for help with more functions currently in development. After alerting to a threat, whoever receives the alert can mark confirm it or mark it as a false positive, thus helping the system learn and get more accurate.

Chipless Future?

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At a time when casinos are transitioning to RFID chips to improve security and accountability, WGPC’s founder Willy Allison made a case for a chipless future.

“I can’t believe in 2019 we give back millions of dollars all over the world to our customers by guessing how many chips they’ve been playing,” Allison said referring to the way casinos award comps to players.

Allison also pointed out that giving up on chips would make gaming more secure for patrons whose winnings will be confidential instead of running the risk of getting robbed after cashing-in chips.

He also claimed that transitioning to chipless games will help fight cheating and money laundering.

Actually, the idea of chipless games is nothing new, with San Diego’s Barona Casino already having introduced it in 2010.

At the chipless games, which include blackjack, poker, and roulette, among many others, dealers deal real cards but players place bets on touch displays.

Responsible Gaming

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While the Expo mainly presented solutions for brick-and-mortar venues, the field of security and safety for live casino pages is also seeing new tech put to good use.

For example, Danish startup Mindway AI also counts on artificial intelligence backed up by expert evaluations to flag users who exhibit signs of gambling addiction.

This allows online casino operators to assist troubled users and to provide a safer gaming experience.

During the event, Mindway AI's CEO Dennis Hvam participated in a panel discussion talking about the use of psychology and neuroscience in analyzing customer behavior.

The company was founded by Dane Kim Mouridsen Ph.D., MSc, a professor at Aarhus University and head of Neuroimaging Methods at the Center for Functionally Integrative Neuroscience (CFIN).

HUDs No More

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This move was made last year and is not related to WGPC, but it’s important to mention nevertheless.

We’re talking about the ban on HUDs in the shared liquidity pool between Nevada, New Jersey, and Delaware that entered into effect last May.

The move didn’t receive universal support among players, especially the more experienced ones, some of whom rely on HUDs to get an edge over the competition.

Others pointed out that HUDs have also been an important tool for self-policing games.

HUDs have been prohibited in Nevada for more than a decade, but New Jersey didn’t have a stance on the issue until last year.

In the end, state regulators involved in the shared liquidity pool reasoned that it’d be better to ban the use of such tools for everybody, instead of having Nevada change its policy which would’ve been a significant hurdle.