About Ultimate Bet Poker.

[kimlee]

I dropped out of the poker tournament so I can post freely about Ultimate Bet. If you are new to online poker then you may not have heard about the superuser scandals at Absolute Poker and Ultimate Bet. Basically some players could see other player's cards and had an enormous advantage. The cheating accounts were linked to prominent insiders.

Even worse, those sites dismissed player complaints. The cheating took place for years, and players compiled hand histories for months. It was only after players started publicizing their proof that Absolute Poker did anything. Then even after Absolute Poker confirmed the cheating, their sister firm Ultimate Bet did not stop similar cheating. Finally, these poker sites blamed the problems on "consultants", but they will not reveal the names and evidence so these people can be punished. They cheated, they lied, and now they are covering up.


Other sites like Poker Stars and Full Tilt actively monitor players. They also prohibit robots and data-analysis software. On AP or UB you may be playing against players with automated decision tools who know your strategy based on every hand you play online.


Finally, Ultimate Bet software modified the tools menu on my web browser, even after I removed it from my computer. I don't like sites to load unauthorized programs on my machine. This has not been a player-friendly company.

 

[Dante]

I have had no issues with them in at least 3 years and I am up overall with them... there CS has been very courteous to me on the 800# and in live chat.... I like them almost as much as Pstars

 

[billhill999]

Now a new superuser scandal is brewing with Pitbull Poker.

 

[bdgear]

good post kimlee:toast:

 

[PO69]

Are we really to assume that someone with 6 posts and joined this year was actually going to the bash this year??

 

[billhill999]

He didn't say what poker tourney, and why should you care if he goes to the Bash or not?

 

[wilheim]

Regarding Ultimate Bet Poker

I was off today but logged in to check my email and want to say first of all Poster Kim Lee IMO does have an agenda here but that is beside the point. To begin with when he had one post he was treated like a veteran poster and given a free room to our Bash immediately. Obviously without regard for the work that went into making him welcome and arranging for him to have a comp room at Golden Nugget he decided to cancel his reservation not just drop out of the poker tournament as he posted so he could according to him post about the now three year old Ultimate Bet/Absolute Bet Poker scandal (something he could have done without involving the Bash for certain) I can't prove if that was his goal to begin with but here is my email to Kimlee welcoming him to the Bash. I had no idea he was a poker professional at this point in time.

Thursday, May 28, 2009 4:42 PM
Hello XXXXX,.reservation received. I will email you your secure link as soon as it is functional. Look forward to seeing you this summer. Thank you for your patience.

Email Secure Link ASAP (for my use)

Thank you for your patience, wilheim

On Wednesday, June 10, 2009 3:58 PM then 1 Post Poster Kimlee wrote
me and Sportsavant:

Dear Guys:

My reservation number is XXXXXX. I'll see you there!


"Kim Lee"

------------
Later Kimlee made his second post in our Poker Sign IN thread on July 11Th.:

I'm in.

Will there be Superusers who can see every body's cards like the online games at UB and AP?

------

One of our mods deleted the post and I wrote to Kimlee explaining why.

Date: Fri, 17 Jul 2009 03:57:34 -0700

<!-- / message -->Hello XXXXX, regarding your deleted post (as Kim Lee) in The Rx Bash 2009 Poker Sign up thread. The policy at The Rx has always been contest threads are off limits to posts such as the one you made.

Had you started your own thread or added your post to a general discussion thread about UltimatBet or AbsoluteBet Poker it would not have been deleted. When our sponsors donate generous sums of money for posters to compete in our contests we feel the least we can do is keep that thread simple and non critical otherwise we would have a very difficult time getting sponsors to donate funds for contests if they are going to get criticized in the very thread where they donated $5,000 that will go to posters like yourself.

I have no problem with you playing in the tournament but all you need to do is post I'm in.

If you have a dispute with Ultimetbet or Absolutebet Poker feel free to post a new thread about it and outline the details of your problem and we will try to help resolve the matter.

Thank you, wilheim


Note #1: KimLee emailed in his account number at UltimateBet to qualify for a seat all the while aware that there was a scandal that has been in some areas still being resolved. He apparently planned on playing in the tournament despite this knowledge.

Sat, Jul 11, 2009 at 3:41 PM
RX Poster Name: kimlee
UltimateBet Account number: XXXXXX
Real first name and last Initial: XXXXX X
New or Existing Account: Existing


NOTE #2: I say nothing about KimLee having to give up his seat in the tournament to post freely about either Poker sponsor nor do I say he has to cancel his reservation which he had to be emailed and asked by Sportsavant if he planned on coming as we began to suspect a no show. At no point in time was KimLee made to feel he was unwelcome at Rx Bash 2009 or it's Poker Tournement. He joined on purpose despite his feelings regarding the scandal which should make you wonder what his motives are in the first place.-- wil

Posted by KimLee on: 07-15-2009, 02:49 PM

One Last Try

<HR style="COLOR: #fdde82; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #fdde82" SIZE=1><!-- / icon and title --><!-- message -->E-mail sent.


Of course he already had his reservation by this time and now has decided that he doesn't want to come which is his prerogative, I will give his room to another Rx poster. My point is Kimlee was not mistreated in anyway nor told he could not play in the tournament or attend the Bash he already had a seat in plus a reserved room comped by The Rx.com. waiting for him. Not to mention an explanation was sent regarding his derogatory post in the Poker tourney sign in tournament thread in a very timely fashion.


Regarding KimLee which is a nom de plume. He is a Texas HoldEm expert and super strategist of some reknown plus he is is the co-author of at least two TexasHoldem poker books (Kill Phil and Kill Everyone both advanced strategy books on playing Hold-Em). Kim Lee is also known for analyzing options with stochastic volatility and international stock risk.

Now he surfaces here at The Rx.com and while using a trip to our Bash as a backdrop decides to criticize two of the Bash Poker Tourney sponsors that were kind enough to donate $5,000 to the contestants as prize money.

Anyone who would like to be put in touch with Uiltmate Bet upper management for a full explanation as to what safe guards have been put in place to avoid a further occurrence of the scandal can email me at person19481950@yahoo.com and I will put you in touch with someone that is very much aware of the entire situation and it's resolution at both UltimateBet and AbsoluteBet Poker.

I guarantee you there will be no cheating in our tournament at The Rx Bash in The Golden Nuget on August 15th despite what kimlee insinuated in his now delted post which read:

"I'm in.

Will there be Superusers who can see everybody's cards like the online games at UB and AP"? Obviously an inflamatory post in the middle of the sign-up thread (originally post #67) that cast an unfair shadow on our live tournament that will be run in The Golden Nugget main poker room by their on duty staff of experienced poker bosses and dealers.

I copied this article about the matter from PocketFives.com

<SCRIPT type=text/javascript>hasEML = false;</SCRIPT>Ultimate Bet Cheating Scandal Statement Released..
Published May 27 2008.

The online poker world has been buzzing in recent weeks over the cheating scandal that has erupted at Ultimate Bet. Coming on the heels of a similar scandal at UB’s sister site, Absolute Poker, the irregular activity at UB culminated on Thursday, when UB released a statement. PocketFives.com has an inside look at UB’s statement.

The statement sums up the findings of the investigation: “The investigation has concluded that certain player accounts did in fact have an unfair advantage, and that these accounts targeted the highest limit games on the site. The individuals responsible were found to have worked for the previous ownership of UltimateBet prior to the sale of the business to Tokwiro in October 2006.”

How did the cheating occur? UB explains, “The fraudulent activity was enabled by unauthorized software code that allowed the perpetrators to obtain hole card information during live play. The existence of this vulnerability was unknown to Tokwiro until February 2008 and existed prior to UltimateBet’s acquisition by Tokwiro in October 2006. Our investigation has confirmed that the code was part of a legacy auditing system that was manipulated by the perpetrators.”

Back in January, UltimateBet was given notice of potential cheating by the account “NioNio.” The account was suspended in order to investigate. NioNio had won an abnormally large percentage of the time. A thread on twoplustwo noted that, at one point, NioNio had won in 13 of his last 14 sessions for $135,000. He had been winning at 114 big blinds per 100 hands.

In February, UltimateBet’s investigation confirmed that the suspicious accounts belonged to “individuals who had worked for UltimateBet under the previous ownership,” according to the press release issued Thursday. The cheating occurred over a 20 month period from March 6, 2006 to December 3, 2007. Account names that were used included NioNio, Sleepless, NoPaddles, nvtease, flatbroke33, ilike2win, UtakeIt2, FlipFlop2, erick456, WhackMe44, RockStarLA, stoned2nite, monizzle, FireNTexas, HeadKase01, LetsPatttty, NYMobser, and WhoWhereWhen.

UltimateBet claims to have removed the code that enabled these accounts to cheat in February, 2008. The process of refunding customers will now begin. In addition, the press release states, “UltimateBet customers are no longer permitted to change account names unless they have suffered abuse in chat rooms.” More importantly, “Accounts related to the fraudulent activity have been disabled, and the individuals associated with those accounts permanently banned from the site.” UB’s parent company is also pursuing legal action.

A new addition to UltimateBet in the future will be a state of the art Security Center. The press release describes how it will work: “The first release of the new Security Center focuses solely on the immediate detection of abnormal winnings. Gaming mathematicians, poker professionals, and security software developers have all contributed to the specifications for the new Security Center.” A Poker Security team will compliment the Security Center and focus on preventing fraud.

Ultimate Bet is licensed by the Kahnawake Gaming Commission. The site opened for business in 1999.

--------------------------


Thank you, wilheim



Wilheim
Head Moderator
The Rx.com Posting Forum

 

[wilheim]

Ultimate Bet Scandal Q&A

Posted May 29, 2008 by Nat Arem on his blog.


I was able to get an early look at the statement and Ultimate Bet agreed to answer some of my questions. I am not sure if I will be able to ask followup questions, but obviously post any questions you may have in the comments and I’ll see what I can get answered.

Here are my 10 questions and Ultimate Bet’s answers:

1. The “individuals worked for the previous ownership of UltimateBet” — does this mean they were employees of UB only pre-sale but not post-sale? Were any of them owners at any point?

All individuals involved worked for the previous ownership prior to Tokwiro acquiring in Oct 2006. We have learned through our investigation that one of the individuals involved was a liaison to UB post sale as part of the transition, but that person has not worked for the company or had access to systems for roughly a year. The previous ownership of UB was a publicly traded company and we do not believe anyone involved was an owner of the business.

2. When you say Tokwiro is pursuing legal options, does this in anyway include an attempt to have legal charges (either civil or criminal) brought against the individuals responsible?

Yes. We are reviewing all of our legal options, both civil and criminal.

3. Do you expect the names of the individuals responsible to be released at some point?

At this point, we are uncertain how the legal action will ultimately unfold. We have turned over all evidence and information to our regulatory body the KGC.

4. When you say Tokwiro is taking full responsibility, does that mean all of the refunds are coming out of Tokwiro’s pockets? Was any money able to be recovered? If nothing was recovered, do you expect to recover any at any point?

No money has been recovered at this point. All refunds are being paid by Tokwiro. Whether or not we recover any funds depends on the outcome of any legal action.

5. Obviously, people are not happy that it took such effort on the part of the players to notify UB and, for all intents and purposes, harass the site for months and months with the only response being a short statement confirming abnormal winning activity. What would you say were the biggest factors that contributed to the delay?

The most important factors that contributed to the delay were:
First, the complexity of this investigation. We are dealing with a third party software provider and previous software development shops, old versions of the database that complicated our analysis, our regulatory body and their auditors, as well as many years of data.

Second, our desire not to release information until we were certain of its accuracy and thoroughness.

Third, our priorities throughout this investigation have been to make sure the vulnerability was fixed, to make sure that we understood everything that happened. We didn’t want to make any statements before this. Now we are making a statement and refunding players, and the company will continue to do everything possible to prevent anything like this from happening in the future.

6. What sort of information can you give us on the total dollar amount in question?

At this time we are not ready to provide a specific amount.

7. Some of the account name changes happened post-sale. This seems to mean that some of these employees were still involved in the AP-UB enterprise. Either that or they still had friends willing to help them out. Assuming these employees have been fired, when were those responsible for the name changes fired and what sort of further action does Tokwiro have planned?

Unfortunately, some of the account name changes did happen post sale. One individual who was employed by the previous ownership appears to have aided the perpetrators by changing account names. This individual served as liaison to UB through a transition period post sale. After the transition period, this individual continued to send name change requests to our customer service department. The person has not been involved with the company for approximately a year and we have since implemented a no name change policy.

8. I’ve been helping you a little with the Security Center for UB — I think it’s going to be a great tool when it’s finished. When do you reasonably expect it to be ready? Will it apply to both AP and UB?

This Security Center application is a top priority for Tokwiro and this will be used for both AP and UB. We expect the first release to be in production in 6 to 8 weeks.

9. Are you going to have the entire software source code reviewed for any other loopholes? While GA says this loophole is gone, it certainly seems possible that there are other loopholes that current management might not know about.

Gaming Associates has confirmed that the vulnerability has been permanently removed. We are confident that the site is entirely secure. Currently, Gaming Associates is in a continuous audit.

10. If I recall correctly, the AP refunds were completed in under one week (or something close to that). Do you expect the same sort of speed here? Also, will the refunds carry interest in the same manner as the AP refunds?
We expect to have all refunds completed within several days. Tokwiro will be refunding players their net loss for every hand played against the cheating accounts without interest.




NatArem Blog

 

[wilheim]

Ultimatebet issues statement regarding unfair play.

MONTREAL, CANADA (MAY 29, 2008) --- Tokwiro Enterprises ENRG

("Tokwiro"), proprietors of UltimateBet.com ("UltimateBet"), one of the world's largest online card rooms, today announced the results of its lengthy investigation into allegations of unfair play, which was triggered by concerns about an account named 'NioNio'. Tokwiro has worked diligently in cooperation with its regulatory body, the Kahnawake Gaming Commission ("KGC"), and with independent third-party experts to conduct a thorough investigation that included a comprehensive review of hand histories and game data, thorough analyses of software and network security, and audits of its security practices and procedures.

The investigation has concluded that certain player accounts did in fact have an unfair advantage, and that these accounts targeted the highest limit games on the site. The individuals responsible were found to have worked for the previous ownership of UltimateBet prior to the sale of the business to Tokwiro in October 2006. Tokwiro is taking full responsibility for this situation and will immediately begin refunding UltimateBet customers for any losses that were incurred as a result of unfair play.

The fraudulent activity was enabled by unauthorized software code that allowed the perpetrators to obtain hole card information during live play. The existence of this vulnerability was unknown to Tokwiro until February 2008 and existed prior to UltimateBet's acquisition by Tokwiro in October 2006. Our investigation has confirmed that the code was part of a legacy auditing system that was manipulated by the perpetrators. Gaming Associates, independent auditors hired by the KGC, have confirmed that the software code that provided the unfair advantage has been permanently removed.

Throughout the investigation of this incident, Tokwiro's consistent priorities have been:

To permanently remove the ability to engage in unfair play;
To complete its investigation and come to a full understanding of what occurred;

To refund the affected customers; and To implement measures that prevents future incidents.

The Company said, "We would like to thank our customers for their patience, loyalty and support, as well as for their understanding that we are doing everything we can to correct this situation. The staff and management of UltimateBet are fully committed to providing a safe and secure environment for our players, and we want to assure customers of our unwavering resolve to monitor site security with every resource at our disposal."

Investigation Timeline
These are the key events in the course of the incident.

January 2008: UltimateBet is alerted to suspicions of unfair play on the part of the account "NioNio". Within 24 hours, UltimateBet contacts the KGC to provide formal notice that UltimateBet has initiated an investigation of the incident. UltimateBet subsequently forwarded a copy of all related data to the KGC.

January 2008: The "NioNio" account and related accounts are suspended pending further investigation.

February 2008: Preliminary findings indicate abnormally high winning statistics for the suspect accounts. After discussions with the KGC, UltimateBet engages third-party gaming experts to assist with the analysis.

February 2008: Investigators confirm that the suspect accounts are associated with individuals who had worked for UltimateBet under the previous ownership.

February 2008: UltimateBet discovers the unauthorized code that allowed the perpetrators to obtain hole card information during live play. The code was part of a legacy auditing system that was manipulated by the perpetrators of the fraud.

February 2008: UltimateBet immediately removes the unauthorized code and works with the KGC and with third-party auditors to verify that the security hole has been eliminated.

March 2008: Six player accounts are confirmed to have participated in this scheme. No accounts were deleted at any point, although some account names were changed multiple times. The following account names are known to have been used in the fraudulent activity: NioNio, Sleepless, NoPaddles, nvtease, flatbroke33, ilike2win, UtakeIt2, FlipFlop2, erick456, WhackMe44, RockStarLA, stoned2nite, monizzle, FireNTexas, HeadKase01, LetsPatttty, NYMobser, and WhoWhereWhen.

May 2008: The investigation confirms that the fraudulent activity took place from March 7, 2006 to December 3, 2007.

May 2008: Gaming Associates certifies that the software code that enabled unfair play was removed from UltimateBet servers in February of 2008.

May 2008: Customers affected by this incident are identified, and plans for corrective action are reviewed with the KGC.

Corrective Actions Taken

The following actions have been taken or are currently underway as a direct result of this investigation.
The security hole identified in UltimateBet's investigation has been permanently eliminated.

UltimateBet is establishing a state-of-the-art software Security Center that consolidates and greatly enhances existing security capabilities. The first release of the new Security Center focuses solely on the immediate detection of abnormal winnings. Gaming mathematicians, poker professionals, and security software developers have all contributed to the specifications for the new Security Center.

UltimateBet customers are no longer permitted to change account names unless they have suffered abuse in chat rooms. Requests for changes must be supported by proof of abuse and must be approved by the Chief Compliance Officer.

In addition to its existing security department, UltimateBet has established a new specialized Poker Security team of professionals dedicated to fraud prevention.

The refund process will begin immediately. The accounts associated with fraudulent activity did not use an unfair advantage in all play sessions. Regardless, UltimateBet is refunding all losses to these accounts.

Accounts related to the fraudulent activity have been disabled, and the individuals associated with those accounts permanently banned from the site.

UltimateBet has worked closely and transparently with its governing body, the KGC and its designated expert auditors, to determine exactly what happened, how it happened, and who was involved, and has taken action to prevent any possibility of this situation recurring.

Tokwiro is pursuing its legal options in regard to this incident.

To read the statement released by UltimateBet in its entirety, click here.

 

[festeringZit]

I've been playing at Absolute Poker, which is Ultimate Bet's
sister site, for years and have never had a problem.

I play about 20 hours a week, and make deposits/cash=outs at
least once every month or so.

 

[wilheim]

festeringZit

Thanks for your input. To be honest I have a small but bothersome problem with Kim lee's continued beating the very dead horse known as the UltimateBet AbsoluteBet Poker Scandal even further here on the Rx.com because they became sponsors a few months ago and stepped up to sponsor our 6Th annual Poker Tournament. To involve our annual Bash while doing it rubs me the wrong way somehow (nothing serious as I have grown a thick skin moderating here for almost 6 years).

Perhaps I am too sensitive but a ton of work and a good deal of money goes into making the Bash event a successful one and the Poker Tournament (free with the exception of a $20 toke per player for the pit crew) is good honest fun. A game played where most of the players know each other and has always been notable for the amount of camaraderie and good sportsmanship involved.


A $5,000 free roll to go with a fantastic Buffet Dinner with open bars for all and comped rooms along with tons of other giveaways and kimlee uses it as a stage to rehash what has been all over the Internet for the last two years.

Just look at the 2+2 poker forum if you want to read countless threads on the matter.

Sorry you won't be able to attend this year.

Thanks for your many contributions to the site over the years.


Best of luck this football season.


Best, wil..

 

[festeringZit]

Thanks for your input. To be honest I have a small but bothersome problem with Kim lee's continued beating the very dead horse known as the UltimateBet AbsoluteBet Poker Scandal even further here on the Rx.com because they became sponsors a few months ago and stepped up to sponsor our 6Th annual Poker Tournament. To involve our annual Bash while doing it rubs me the wrong way somehow (nothing serious as I have grown a thick skin moderating here for almost 6 years).

Perhaps I am too sensitive but a ton of work and a good deal of money goes into making the Bash event a successful one and the Poker Tournament (free with the exception of a $20 toke per player for the pit crew) is good honest fun. A game played where most of the players know each other and has always been notable for the amount of camaraderie and good sportsmanship involved.


A $5,000 free roll to go with a fantastic Buffet Dinner with open bars for all and comped rooms along with tons of other giveaways and kimlee uses it as a stage to rehash what has been all over the Internet for the last two years.

Just look at the 2+2 poker forum if you want to read countless threads on the matter.

Sorry you won't be able to attend this year.

Thanks for your many contributions to the site over the years.


Best of luck this football season.


Best, wil..

Thanks Wil.,

I really wanted to make this bash, but the dates conflicted with a family
vacation that I couldn't reschedule. I'm sure y'all will have a blast - I hope
to make the next one. -FZ

 

[Betallsports]

I for one, think it's kind of Funny that someone would Bring this stoey up Over a Year that it went Public.

There's nothing to hide, as this was ALL Over the News. It was on 20/20, Primetime and other shows.
Every News Paper had something about it, and Every Report said that the Current Owners had Nothing to do with it.


Just my 2 cents, Carry on.:drink: