Journalist writes about his 'bot' experience with online poker

Vice journalist Hayden Vernon turned £1 into £220 at an online poker site using a bot them penned an article to share his experiences. Is it any wonder there was some backlash?

Vice Journalist Uses Bot to Cheat at Online Poker, Writes About It

Hmmm... The story didn't reveal how big was the field on that tourney, but still - first place

Personally I'm not that worried about bots, I'm more worried about colloboration. Seeing more than third of the field coming from a same country in a small 45 seat Sit'n Go is enough to get my suspicions going.

The journalist thought that he would be supported in this issue, but he was called bad words after the publication of the information.

Vallet said:

The journalist thought that he would be supported in this issue, but he was called bad words after the publication of the information.

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Well, i think this is a interesting thing. players will always call bad words. but, is good to see the true about this online game

gday all...this confirms the [ bot ] experience.....had my own thoughts as on 2 diff sites recently i was followed by a couple players..bot ?...this was a 1-2 cash table..thanks darrell

I read this article earlier in the week...

Less than impressed to say the least!


The journalist was lucky that comments weren't possible where I read it because I was going to give him both barrels of 'backlash'.

Was going to tear him a new one...

The last thing anyone probably wants scurrying up their leg is a furious, rabid squirrel.

I have to wonder how this person could have possibly been so cavalier about literally cheating. Like, he has to know that that's what he was doing, right? I mean, especially considering what used to happen to poker cheats in the old days he should count himself lucky that bad words is the bulk of what he's getting. I just don't understand how he can think so much nothing of cheating people who are after the experience of playing the dang game, which he clearly was not. Like, does he think along the lines of, idk, poker players are scum because gambling is a sin, so who cares what I do to them?

luan466 said:

Well, i think this is a interesting thing. players will always call bad words. but, is good to see the true about this online game

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He did a good job. But to do this, he had to go to the dark side. Such things are always perceived with indignation.

"Heeeeeey guys, let's commit crimes to prove how the justice is failing"... This was not an good idea, but at least he proved his point...Lol

unfortunately online will never give us a 100% guarantee of integrity. and the bots were known before. probably there is always any "talented" programmer who can deceive the security service of online sites.
I hope that honesty will win))).

Pretty stupid to write an article admitting to cheating.

It’s sad that we’re already here that we have to look at the table where you sit out the bot. However, this should be filtered by a room with all its might for a clean game.
Pure play is the key.

I believe most good players would exploit the consistency of bots to their own advantage. I'd look out for them in micro stages, but I doubt they'll ever be effective in the big money rings. The article is well written and, if anything, helps raise awareness to the presence of these bots at the tables while also pointing out their massive shortcomings. Not a bad read

Shells said:

Vice journalist Hayden Vernon turned £1 into £220 at an online poker site using a bot them penned an article to share his experiences. Is it any wonder there was some backlash?

Vice Journalist Uses Bot to Cheat at Online Poker, Writes About It

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This is the problem with so-called "journalists" in this day and age. They write articles always judging someone else's morality and having an opinion overshadow "facts" . Even though author knew he violated terms and services of the site, he even asked for assistance from "bot" creator, I believe, I only skimmed the article. The general idea I got was since I am writing an article none of the rules apply to me.

jsnake716 said:

This is the problem with so-called "journalists" in this day and age. They write articles always judging someone else's morality and having an opinion overshadow "facts" . Even though author knew he violated terms and services of the site, he even asked for assistance from "bot" creator, I believe, I only skimmed the article. The general idea I got was since I am writing an article none of the rules apply to me.

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One would hope he would have known what he was potentially going to have to face after the investigation was released. Writers or journalists have to have thick skin to take on any backlash they may get when they release their findings, good or bad.

Maybe that bot was just lucky? IMHO we are far away from bots beating NL Holdem.

Delfino said:

Maybe that bot was just lucky? IMHO we are far away from bots beating NL Holdem.

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Really ?? I am in the middle of a session but check 2+2 , we just had a guy who was part of a group using "software" to beat site security and crush mid-high stakes games. This was a couple months back, on more than 1 site.

This is not a plug n play "bot" that is available to general public but players are finding ways to use real-time software.

Well I might not know the latest discoveries but AFAIK only heads-up limit holdem was solved so far. From there there is a long way to make a profitable bot in no-limit holdem. AI has real problems with games that don't give full information. While they are great at chess for example bridge bots still play pretty bad and they can compete only with rather newbie players.

Delfino said:

Maybe that bot was just lucky? IMHO we are far away from bots beating NL Holdem.

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Hayden Vernon risked his career by telling this. And you question this information.:dontknow:

It showed vulnerabilities in the security system of pokerrooms, which is not something new, showed that a bot can win a tournament, which also seems to be known, showed that the game can not always be played fairly, but was it worth risking your future because of this?

It is impossible to prove one hundred percent that everything online is fake, just as it is impossible to prove that everything is honest. This is a game with incomplete information and an element of luck - each event will always have its own probability.

Slacker said:

Pretty stupid to write an article admitting to cheating.

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A lot of people think online is a crooked game to begin with.

This guy simply showed how easy it is and how easy it can be done

Pretty stupid not to see how this could be a stunt to drive website views of this “journalistic masterpiece”. He made plenty off of a tiny investment. Seems pretty stupid to quit when he was clearly making bank.....unless you’re after the web traffic.

Big picture. Big picture.

Vallet said:

Hayden Vernon risked his career by telling this. And you question this information.:dontknow:

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Behave yourself. Risked his career as a journo for Vice? He's not flipping Woodward or Bernstein.