The PartyPoker network of online poker sites announced that it has reclaimed more than $700,000 from a network of poker bots with the help of a specialist fraud team. PartyPoker said 277 bots had been shut down between December 1, 2018, and March 31, 2019.
Helping to facilitate the recent wave of action is a new Poker Fraud Team comprised of ex-professionals. PartyPoker has declined to identify the team members, but officials say the collaboration used a combination of tracking software and professional insights to expose 75 percent of the recent incidents.
Poker bots, software programs that can be decisions on behalf of players in an online poker game, have plagued not only PartyPoker but also virtually all major poker sites over the years. As artificial intelligence technology has improved, poker bots have become more sophisticated, making them profitable and harder to spot.
PartyPoker said its team has redistributed $734,852 to those who were cheated.
“I’m very confident now that they can tackle people trying to play against the rules,” said Patrick Leonard, senior consultant and “poker ambassador for PartyPoker. “In my opinion, it isn’t worth somebody trying to bend the rules because, in the words of Liam Neeson: they will find you, they will catch you and they will.. ban you.”
To help reduce fraud, PartyPoker is asking players to report any suspicious activity via email. What’s more, the team will continue to release updates on the number of bot closures it carries out.
