THE THREAT OF HACKING TO ONLINE POKER
For those who love their poker online, the integrity of the internet, or at least the security involved, is vital. While some play online for money, the vast majority of poker players play for free, for fun, and the love of the game. Yet their personal details, passwords and personal messages are still at the mercy of internet security systems which this month came under attack by hackers.
Last week the forum was hacked, with details of usernames, emails, passwords and private messages stolen, raising fears that private information, much of it about financial transactions, could now be made public.
Hacking is not uncommon and is becoming an increasing concern to businesses and organisations using the internet for their business.
In 2011 hackers, working out of bedrooms in their parents’ houses, stole details of 77 million users from Sony, deemed by some experts to be an easy target, being a large organisation that by nature will find it hard to defend itself from every direction. The group responsible, calling themselves “LulzSec”, have also been accused of attacking the Serious Organised Crime Agency in the UK, as well as the United States Senate, zealously seeking to cause maximum disruption.
It leaves companies and websites will little choice but to upgrade their security and advise their users in the virtues of keeping information private. Two Plus Two users were informed that they should change their passwords if they used the same one on other websites.
The issue of online security has never been more prevalent, and the effects this will have on Mind Sports has yet to be examined in the new digital age. While sport itself deals with issues of steroids, online mind sports such as poker will be facing a future of security, ensuring that private information, even when there is no money involved, is kept safe from the hands of the unscrupulous. It’s an issue that IFP will be tackling when it launches its membership package later this year.
