Collusion in Online Poker is the Most Common form of Cheating
FuckOnlinePoker explains what colluding is, how to not become a victim, and what is being done to stop it.
PokerPulse reported that one Sunday $178,873,992 was wagered in online tournaments on Sunday. Online Poker is simply becoming a huge pastime. However, with that much money being bet regularly, there is going to be people who try to circumvent the legit methods of winning and blatantly cheat. Collusion is the most common form of cheating in online poker. Collusion is several players at the same table (or one player using multiple computers) sharing information about a hand with the primary objective of giving themselves an unfair advantage over the competition. One form of this is called 'foot-sawing,' where a player with a weak hand helps out a strong-handed co-conspirator by staying in the hand and raising to build a bigger pot and force others to bet more.
However, for colluding to be profitable for the cheaters, they have to play their collective hands well and win enough for their efforts after the profit has been divided up amongst those collaborating. Most experts believe that colluding takes place at short handed tables where the colluders will make up a larger percentage of the players at the table. Also, most experts agree that collusion often takes place at the lower limit games where the colluders are less likely to face pros that would recognize their methods. Lee Jones, Pokerstars room manager, says that despite multiple cases each day most colluders lose money. In reality, the online poker sites security is constantly monitoring and catching those colluding, shutting down their accounts and freezing their money. Lee Jones expresses the importance of keeping the games honest when he says "The security and integrity of the game and the cards we deal is our entire business."