If you’ve watched Ocean’s Eleven, you may have noticed the amount of planning and strategizing that went into robbing Terry Benedict’s casinos. Is stealing from a casino as simple as dismantling electrical systems, or is the movie plot too good to be true? The short answer is, it’s nearly impossible to pull off a casino heist at this level.

Technology Tactics Deployed by Casinos To Prevent Cheating

Casinos use several technologies to track cheating and theft. They are keen on promoting fair play between punters and ensuring no side uses devious tactics to win. Whether you gamble for fun or are one of the people striving to earn significant amounts out of gambling, here are the tactics you can expect to find deployed at casinos.

Cameras

Most casinos have high-quality cameras and monitors covering every square inch of the gaming floor. You might also find cameras outside the floor – for example, in the entrance hallway and the parking lot. The cameras are on 24/7. They can capture even the minutest details and collect information on every punter entering the casino. Security personnel in the casino use them to track suspicious movements and observe the situation on the floor.

Biometric Face Recognition Databases

Some casinos deploy biometric facial recognition technology to scan faces and store the data in their database. Casinos use this technology to find a player who has a history of causing trouble. The moment you step onto the casino floor, the camera scans your facial features and maps them to check for a match in the database. If you’ve been in that particular casino before, there will most likely be a match.

NORA Software

NORA stands for Non-Obvious Relationship Awareness, and it allows the casino to identify personal connections between players. This software detects relationships between punters and alerts the casino security to be cautious. For example, when players sit at a poker table, NORA tries to identify if any of them has ever shared a phone call.

NORA software detects the following relationships:

  • Work history
  • Criminal ties
  • Matching address (same school and neighborhood)
  • Personal debt links

RFID Technology

One way to steal from a casino is by cashing out counterfeit chips. To overcome this problem, most casinos now deploy RFID technology. It enables the casino to insert a small, trackable RFID tag into each chip.

The casino’s RFID tags broadcast unique serial identifiers over radio frequencies. A casino cashier will not be cashing out any chips unidentified by the RFID reader. They instantly become worthless. Stolen chips, too, will have their RFID signal turned off so no one can cash them out.

Angel Eye System

The Angel Eye tracking system is another technology tactic used by casinos to prevent unfair gameplay from card tricksters. The casino can use this system to track and prevent the switching of cards during gameplay.

The Angel Eye system functions by marking every card with a unique and invisible bar code. The code can be identified by a sensor in the dealer’s shoe. Once the dealer activates the system, it checks for discrepancies between the cards dealt and the bar codes in the database. This system promotes fair play and enables the casino to detect players that switch cards.

Technology Trumps Cheaters

It’s no secret that casinos handle a lot of money. They are perfect spots for tricksters and cheaters looking to rob the casino and its players but it is not like browsing dramacool– or are they? Cheating in a casino is almost impossible due to the technology tactics deployed to prevent theft and unfair gameplay. Some of the most common ways include RFID tracking, cameras, and NORA software. Most casinos use a combination of all these tools. Whenever you go into a land casino to gamble, don’t forget that the house is always watching.