Everything related to money is likely to have been counterfeited at least once, and casino chips are no exception to this rule. Those who want to stay away from playing free slots online and would rather visit a land-based casino to cheat (which is highly recommended against doing) have probably wondered how to counterfeit casino chips. Casinos like best payout online casino Australia 2022 always encourage gamblers with different kinds of bonuses, so is it good to think about counterfeiting after such benefits? Moreover, it is not an easy feat to do so – especially with the current state of modern technology and security checking capabilities of casinos. It is, however, far from impossible, even if it is really difficult to accomplish.
After players can claim 400% deposit bonus from popular casinos, should you think about the possibility of rigging?
Dealing with Counterfeited Casino Chips
There’s a large number of casino visitors that try to pass fake chips as real ones. Given how the act of doing so counts as a felony, the number of people that do it is undisclosed. However, it is known that at least a dozen people do so in Las Vegas casinos every year because of local complaints made to the authorities. It’s safe to assume that the actual number is much bigger.
The truth is, even if the player manages to pull it off, the casino will keep their eyes open during the next visit that the gambler makes to the casino. Cheating on a casino with counterfeited chips is basically stealing money from the location, which could get players in legal trouble as well as outright banned from the casino in which the offence is perpetrated.
How Casinos Recognize Counterfeit Chips
There are some key ways for casinos to recognise chips. Technology is the safest and most reliable one, but staff preparation is usually just as important.
- Cashier Training: Cashiers in reputable casinos are trained to detect fake chips. Low-end casino cashiers could fail to tell which chips are real from a good counterfeit, but the culprit is still likely to be found by checking video evidence.
- Staff Vigilance: Even though it’s impossible for casinos to watch everyone at once, unlike what some Hollywood movies portray, it is true that the casino staff is always on the lookout for cheaters and will pay specific attention to people acting suspiciously.
- Chip Authenticity: Every chip in every casino has a unique set of features that make it unique and that make it almost impossible to replicate. Amateurs could try, but it’s sure to lead to their demise in the long run. Chips are authentic in every casino.
Every Popular Casino Anti-Counterfeit Measure Explained
Casinos have three main ways used to detect people trying to counterfeit chips into their establishments. It’s difficult to recognise real-looking fake chips, but the casino staff is usually trained to do so.
People looking for ways to play free slots online would never have to worry about this, though. Why counterfeit chips when players could simply use free spins to play games and earn real money for free? Here are some ways how casinos protect their property:
- Security Cameras
Those rooms with security guards looking at every security camera at the same time may be reserved for the movies, but it’s true that casinos have cameras everywhere. If a player turns in fake chips and then walks away, the casino staff will most definitely check security footage to catch the perpetrator and prohibit their entrance to the casino or press charges against them.
- UV Light Scanners
High-end casinos or casinos with reputable security will use UV scanners to see if the chips have been modified by the players or if any hologram security feature is there when the gambler turns in the money. UV light also helps detect irregularities in casino chips.
It’s common for casino staff to use UV light to check chips when players turn them in. Not all casinos do this, but it’s a foolproof way to catch cheaters.
- Holograms and Microstamping
Chips are created under the same security circumstances as bills. They are often embedded with security features that make them quite difficult to forge from scratch. Some casinos even put numbers on their chips, just like treasuries do with money.
Holograms and microstamping are two of the most common and effective chip anti-counterfeit measures used by modern casinos. These allow the casino staff to know which chips are fake when counting them.
Most Common Ways for People to Counterfeit Chips
It’s really not recommended to counterfeit or forge fake chips to try and smuggle into a casino, but there are two main ways in which cheaters tend to do it. Once caught, the trouble they get into is massive, but they theoretically work.
- Paint Over Real Chips with Another Value
A very common way to cheat with casino chips is to buy chips of a lower value, smuggle them out of the casino, and manually rework them to make them look like their higher value counterparts. This could be easily detected once the chips are turned on (especially if UV light is used), but it usually works in the short term.
- Get into a Table with Fake Chips
Gamblers could theoretically use fake chips and go and play roulette, for example, as that would make the dealer collect the chips without knowing that they’re fake. A simple bet on red or black could return a winning in real chips.
Are There Legal Consequences for Counterfeiting Chips?
Counterfeiting casino chips is illegal, and players could get in a lot of trouble for doing so or even trying to do so without succeeding. If a casino finds out about a player trying to counterfeit chips, the police could be instantly involved in the demeanour.
Burglary is the most common charge raised for counterfeiting casino chips, together with the possession of cheating devices which is federally illegal in the United States and in most countries. There are plenty of other charges that the casino could press against the cheater, should they decide to do so, resulting in felonies for the person responsible for the practice. As we can see, there are no legal consequences for counterfeiting casino chips.
Casino Chips are Unique
It doesn’t matter how hard a player tries to cheat; counterfeiting or forging chips to pass them as legit ones is sure to end up being discovered. The main reason why this is always true is that chips work like currency within the casino. It can be just as difficult to counterfeit chips as it is to forge currency and pass it as real.
Some people may be able to get away with doing it once, but the casino will be on the lookout for them during their next visit. Players that cheat this way are sure to get in legal trouble if discovered.
