How Online Poker Sites Catch Cheats and Collusion
Aug. 27 2026, Updated 12:55 p.m. ET
As with any game, a major challenge for online poker operators is identifying cheating and collusion. In a live game setting, you can see the players around the table and what they are doing, but that is not possible online. That gives players hidden behind a screen different opportunities to cheat, whether that is using prohibited software, multiple accounts, or colluding with other players.
For that reason, platforms offering online Poker continually have to come up with new ways to detect and prevent instances of either cheating or collusion at their tables. Common methods include using data to highlight specific gameplay behaviour and suspicious player accounts. In some cases, they also have to follow guidelines set out by regulatory frameworks that require them to use the systems and processes necessary to help highlight potential cases of cheating.
What Counts as Cheating in Online Poker?
Having any sort of unfair advantage over other players at the table is considered cheating in online poker. There are several ways cheaters attempt to do this, with collusion being one of the more obvious. That involves two or more people at the same table sharing card information and coordinating their actions against all others at the table.
As for other forms of prohibited behavior, these could include:
Multi-accounting: This is where a single player uses more than one account at the table, which obviously gives them an advantage over others.
Collusion: Multiple players on the same table working together against all other opponents. They could be communicating via messengers to reveal their hands and coordinating how they are going to play each hand to maximise profits.
Chip dumping: This is when players deliberately lose chips to another account to give that player an advantage.
Prohibited software: This is the act of using software or tools that can give players an advantage over the rest.
Account sharing: Allowing another person to play using an account that belongs to someone else.
Why every gaming platform and regulatory body will have their own rules in place regarding cheating: most share the same opinion that all players should have the ability to play at poker tables on equal terms with all other competitors. Nobody should have an unfair advantage over others.
Looking for Unusual Playing Patterns
Online poker platforms can use data from gameplay, account activity, and transactions to identify potentially unusual patterns. They can collect a large amount of data about gameplay, account activity, and transactions.
At a physical poker table, it's possible to get information about a player's betting decisions and behavior during a particular session, but not always on a historical basis. An online platform can record a whole lot more and use systems designed to spot unusual patterns. Information brought to light could include when two players are regularly spotted playing at the same tables, which could indicate collusion. Other examples include the different actions taken during hands and the amounts that have been lost or won across two separate accounts.
Why Collusion Can Be Difficult to Spot
Proving collusion is particularly challenging for online platforms, as merely playing at the same tables does not automatically mean two or more players are cheating. It could just be that friends want to play against each other fairly.
Furthermore, players who do work together could be mixing up their gameplay so that it doesn’t look too suspicious. They could avoid repeating the same patterns and instead coordinate their action across a longer playing session.
Studies have shown how behavioral patterns and relationships between players can be analysed to potentially identify multiple players using suspicious behavior. One even developed a system that combined players' social relationships with their in-game behaviour to identify potential collusion, while also highlighting the importance of avoiding false positives.
Human Investigation Still Matters
While data analysis and software-based detection systems help in the battle against cheating, they’re not foolproof. All they can do is highlight patterns that could suggest collusion or cheating is going on. Human investigation is still needed once indicators have been triggered by the software, especially to understand the context around each incident. If an investigation does show there is a strong chance of cheating or collusion, then the platform can take adequate measures such as banning the culprits.
Human investigations are still used by brick-and-mortar establishments as well, as illustrated in a report detailing a cheating case involving the poker legend, Archie Karas.
Protecting the Integrity of the Game
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In short, identifying and preventing cheating and collusion relies on a combination of modern technology and a good amount of human oversight. The idea is that automated systems can be used for the monitoring of the data collected, and humans can perform additional investigation to provide further clues and context to any red flags raised by those checks.
The information provided in this article is for general informational purposes only. Gamble or play responsibly. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, help is available. Call 1-800-GAMBLER. If you’re in the U.K. and need help with a gambling problem, call the National Gambling Helpline on 0808 8020 133 or go to gamstop.co.uk to be excluded from all UK-regulated gambling websites. We disclaim any liability for any loss or damage arising directly or indirectly from the use of, or reliance on, the information presented.
