New York Times Story Shines Lights on Poker Bots

A recent report in the New York Times has once again brought the issue of poker bots to the world’s attention. The article, published on March 13, tells the story of Bryan Taylor, a 36-year-old poker pro who found out that he was playing automated computer opponents on PokerStars.

Of course, once PokerStars investigated and found out that Taylor’s opponents were indeed computers, they were shut down and Taylor was compensated by the site. However, the article brings attention to a growing concern of many people – the possibility that poker bots could become a more common problem in the world of online poker.

At the moment, the proliferation of online bots appears to be at most a minor issue. For one, the bots are, in general, not very successful. While a few bots have surfaced over the years that have been able to make mild profits (at least, before they were detected), many more have been discovered only after being clear losers in their attempts to beat the system. The mixed strategies required in poker are notoriously difficult to program, particularly considering the incomplete information inherent in poker, and the number of variables that can change the decision making process significantly in every hand.

In an email sent to the New York Times, PokerStars security manager Michael Josem outlined how the site deals with poker bots.

“PokerStars is continuing to invest substantial resources to combat bots,” Josem said. “When a player is identified as a bot, PokerStars removes them from our games as soon as possible.” Josem also added that the site does make sure to compensate players who lost money to bots when it is appropriate to do so.

However, while major sites like PokerStars and Full Tilt Poker have been diligent in their investigations of poker bots, many other sites have been lax. This was the opinion of Brian Jetter, the co-founder of a company that sells poker bot software online. He told the Times that while some sites are careful to track down and ban bots, other sites have looked the other way. As for the big sites, though, Full Tilt has already banned more than 400 of Jetter’s customers, he says.

“They really must have wanted us gone,” Jetter said.