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If you thought AI and high-tech digital devices were just meant and limited to entertainment or investigation purposes, there’s something that will leave you completely stunned! Cutting-edge equipment is being used at casino tables to rig games and rip people off all the money they are betting on. The toolbox is pretty simple but immensely disturbing: Cameras are embedded inside the tables from underneath that pass through the felt cover of the table and read through face down cardsModified shuffling machines whose internal cameras can be hijacked to map and reorder decksOrdinary looking (and functioning) smartphones or even small gadgets that can be programmed to analyse the dealt cards and relay the winning seat via an earpiece. Together these tools can turn random play into a predictable, exploitable script, and leave victims thinking they just had a run of bad luck. In India, these techniques are a lingering threat for the casino capital of the country, Goa. The state’s vibrant gambling scene has been a witness of both employee collusion and management-level cheating cases in the past, with local police filing FIRs and chargesheets when discrepancies were exposed. Players are sometimes found to have been involved in cheating through an inner circle, whereas there are also cases filed against casino owners in order to bring the earnings back to the house. In Goa, the legal play‑book is unusual: under the Goa Public Gambling Act, 1976 and subsequent amendments, live casino table games are permitted only in two settings: either within licensed five‑star hotel complexes or aboard offshore vessels. Terrestrial, standalone gambling houses on land are generally excluded from functioning as full‑fledged casinos. As a result, many venues operate in cruise yachts, river‑vessels or anchored ships on the Mandovi River, effectively out on water, to comply with these rules. This maritime workaround creates a floating gaming zone unique in India – and it also opens specific regulatory and security vulnerabilities, especially when the lingering fear of high‑tech cheating tools can come true anytime. Protections in Goa against casino games rigging Historically, oversight in the state has been a mix of complaint-driven probes, routine checks, and occasional sting operations by either the media or enforcement agencies. The state government and assembly debates show that authorities do conduct inspections, and surprise checks are supposed to happen, but there is no public evidence of a fixed “monthly surprise check” covering every venue. Instead, inspections have ranged from spot checks to full investigations when allegations surface, leaving regulators to act reactively rather than proactively in many cases. Read More: Stay In, Slow Down: How India’s Hotels Became The New Destinations This landscape is, however, beginning to shift. In 2025, Goa has begun to move towards tighter casino rules as well as to beef up penalties for licence breaches, drafting new public-gambling rules and proposing stiffer fines running into several lakhs for violations. These measures are aimed at deterring both on-site cheating and illegal live gaming. These reforms also empower a gaming commissioner role to monitor operations more closely. The push reflects mounting political and enforcement pressure after recurring allegations and high-profile raids. Practical safeguards casinos typically use include CCTV arrays, tamper-proof shufflers, independent audit trails, sealed-deck procedures, and staff background checks. To this list, a new item needs to be added and followed through diligently: random/surprise supervisory audits. But technology evolves fast: devices that can be concealed beneath felt (x-ray cheating machines), inside trays or disguised as phones mean operators and regulators must constantly update countermeasures. While Goa has inspection mechanisms and is strengthening rules and penalties, there’s no public record of a single, uniform monthly surprise-check regime covering every venue. Given the sophistication of modern cheating tech, regulators, casino operators and independent auditors will need faster rule updates, mandatory equipment certification, and frequent unannounced technical sweeps to keep the tables fair. Read More: 7 Hot Springs in India You’ll Want to Bookmark for Your Next Trip Travel News - Find latest news and tips based on Indian and World travel including top 10 travel destination, tourism information, how to reach visit and more at Times Now.
