Government Control

Strict controls are in place to ensure that players get a fair deal. Gaming is state controlled in most countries, where a combination of government legislation and gaming control agencies ensure that casinos pay out a reasonable return to the players, and that all the gaming equipment used is fair and accurate.

Modern gaming equipment is state-of-the-art and precision-made. Items are checked regularly to ensure that nothing has been tempered with to give players or the casino an unfair advantage. Roulette wheels are frequently serviced and their balance is checked.

The shoes (boxes) for dealing cards are chained to the table to stop players switching them for cold decks (deck arranged in a specific order). Before play, the cards are spread out to show that full decks are being used, and creased or marked cards are replaced. Any cards that become marked during play are immediately replaced.

At the end of a day's gaming the old cards are counted to ensure that none has been removed. They are the discarded. Before starting each new game the cards are thoroughly shuffled, first by mixing them face down, and then by riffle shuffle (splitting the pack into two and then letting the cards drop by using both thumbs). A player is always invited to cut the cards by inserting a blank card into the pack.

Gaming dice are precision-made perfect cubes. They are transparent, to make it impossible to load them (add weights). During play the dealers continually scrutinize the dice to check they have been not switched for ones with a different arrangement of dots, or have filed edges or rounded corners, as these may make it easier to throw winning numbers. New dice are used each day and destroyed at the end of play, either by being marked with a special stamp or by having a hole drilled through them.

Surveillance

The action on the gaming floors and at the tables is recorded on videotape and stored. Back-office security staff not only watch the players, but also the dealers, to ensure that they are not cheating by colluding with players. If there is any discrepancy, or if a player has a query over an aspect of a specific game, management can request that the relevant tapes be viewed.

Personnel Double-Checked

Casino personnel are usually subject to scrupulous checks before being employed. In the UK for instance, dealers are required to be individually licensed. Before a license is granted, prospective staff are carefully assessed and their backgrounds thoroughly checked. The police or gaming board officials may even visit their homes. In the UK, dealers are not allowed to visit other British casinos in their free time. If found on the premises of another casino, their license is immediately revoked.

In most countries, companies that operate casinos are also subject to stringent licensing procedures, often requiring months of careful investigation by gaming board officials. The lure of lucrative gaming licenses frequently leads to elaborate bidding contests between competitors keen to cash in on what has become accepted as a viable and profitable part of the global leisure and entertainment industry.

Most governments have realized that substantial revenues can be had from gaming, and they levy large annual operating fees - which casinos regard as just one more part of the cost of doing business in an industry that has grown from mob control to mega-dollar conglomerates in only a few decades.