Iovation Recommended by the Nevada Gaming Control Board for Gaming License

Scandal Ridden Cyber Security Firm Iovation Recommended by the Nevada Gaming Control Board for Gaming License

The Nevada Gaming Commission is considering granting a Nevada Gaming license to one of the least savory names in online poker history.

Iovation is a tech company that develops geolocation software to legal digital gambling sites, but it is also notorious for the programs it developed that led to a massive cheating scandal in recent years. The company, Ultimate Bet, was defamed after its owner Russ Hamilton, and others in his circle, stole over $50 million from its players. Iovation co founder Greg Pierson was also implicated in the scandal, though not charged. He remains CEO to this day.

The Ultimate Bet employees used an Iovation-developed function, named “God Mode,” to see other players’ hands during money games and exploit this for victory. Hamilton is famed for defiantly saying, “I did take this money, and I’m not trying to make it right.”

Iovation, which also specializes in fraud prevention, had also been working with poker company Ultimate Poker, which quickly severed ties.

Two years after this scandal, Iovation received a conditional recommendation from the Nevada Gaming Control Board. This would give Iovation a Class 2 license, green lighting its cyber security services for business in the state.

Pierson has hopes of redeeming his company reputation. “My company wrote some software and that software was used to rob players,” he said. “I wish that had not happened. I have to talk about this nightmare that I have become kind of numb to it but hopefully it is now over.”