http://www.gambling911.com/online-gambling-102007.html By Christopher Costigan Gambling911.com Publisher October 20, 2007 With all the hoopla surrounding the Absolute Poker "internal breach", the focus shifts towards Costa Rican employees of online gambling establishments and the common practice of hacking into company computer systems. Absolute Poker has claimed that one of their employees with "intimate knowledge" of their software platform, was able to go in and play along with real customers, identify their whole cards, and presumably walk off with the top money prize in tournaments (though there is a suggestion that the individual in question never saw any of this cash). Hacking is an all too common practice among skilled tech employees of Costa Rican online gambling establishments and rarely is it done to be malicious. "This employee wanted to prove to us he could do this (see the whole cards)," a Senior Manager of Absolute Poker conveyed to Gambling911.com. Oddly enough this was the same exact statement made when a BetonSports employee was reprimanded for hacking into the Human Resource database some years back. We were present when a tech employee was ushered into the office of then owner, Gary Kaplan, after it was learned he had hacked into this data base. After all those stories we have read about Mr. Kaplan (currently awaiting trial in a St. Louis jail) (see: Gary Kaplan and BetonSports Profiled by River Front Times [1]) one immediately worried about the fate of this hacking culprit: shot, mutilated, at the very least - terminated without pay. Just to show how Gary Kaplan wasn't as ferocious a man as he is made out to be, the "hacker" returned back to his desk smiling and joking. The punishment appeared to be that he could continue working at BetonSports. I had once sent an email out from that office using one of their computer terminals. I soon learned that one of their employees hacked into my account and used my email to spam several hundred thousand people. "They are like little monkeys trying to prove how good they are with computers," a BetonSports executive told us at the time. One of the individuals responsible for overseeing the IT staff and graphics department relayed to Gambling911: "These guys are always hacking into systems and computers here just to show they can do it." Many operators carry with them a certain arrogance too when it comes to those disappearing customer lists. This has always been a major problem within the online gambling industry proper and continues to be. The Absolute Poker debacle will reinforce the need for better "internal security" and more serious punishment for those who engage in "inner office hacking activities for fun". Whether this is the scenario that occurred at Absolute remains to be seen. [1] http://www.gambling911.com/Gary-Kaplan-BetonSports-101107.html __________________________________________________________________ CSI 2007 is the only conference that delivers a business-focused overview of enterprise security. It will convene 1,500+ delegates, 80 exhibitors and features 100+ sessions/seminars providing a roadmap for integrating policies and procedures with new tools and techniques. Register now for savings on conference fees and/or free exhibits admission. - www.csiannual.com
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