How to Spot Cheaters at the Casino

Since the very first casino opened its doors, an endless war has raged between the operators trying to protect their money and the criminals trying to steal it.

Cheating is no longer about complex card counting (which is technically legal); it is about physically manipulating the cards, the dice, or the chips after the outcome is known.

Understanding the “Past Posting” Scam

If they win a hand of blackjack, their original $10 bet is magically transformed into a $100 bet right before the dealer pays them out.

Often, a confederate (an accomplice) will intentionally spill a drink or loudly argue with a waitress at the exact moment the cheater makes the move.

• The scam almost always involves a loud, intentional distraction created by an accomplice
• Cheaters also use “pinching,” which is removing chips from a bet after losing the hand
• If a player is constantly hovering their hands near their chips after the deal, pit bosses become highly suspicious

How Players Manipulate the Deck

In card games like Blackjack and Baccarat, the entire house edge relies entirely on the fact that the next card in the shoe is a complete mystery.

A more sophisticated, highly controversial method popularized by poker legend Phil Ivey is known as “edge sorting.”

The Mechanics of a Craps Scam

The craps table is extremely difficult to cheat due to the massive size of the table, the required wall-bounce, and the presence of four highly trained dealers.

By keeping the desired number facing upward during the entire slide, they only have to worry about the random outcome of the second tumbling die.

The glamorous era of casino cheating has largely been eradicated by incredibly advanced facial recognition, RFID-chipped betting tokens, and relentless surveillance.