Update: Absolute Poker admits to security breach
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In the wake of increasing criticism and mounting evidence, Absolute Poker yesterday admitted to players that there had, in fact, been a security breach at their room which allowed certain players to gain access to information not available to all players.
The background of this scandal, which first broke on the NeverWinPoker and 2+2 forums, can be found in our archived stories here. Short version: insanely suspect play on the part of a few individuals at high stakes games leads generally rational players to conclude that the fix is in.
The statement released by Absolute, copied below, is short on details but very clear in terms of an admission. Pundits are speculating that the spread of the story, which had begun to penetrate mainstream media with mentions on MSNBC and ABC, motivated Absolute to come clean.
Dear valued player,
Absolute Poker has identified an internal security breach that compromised our systems for a limited period of time. The cause of the breach has been determined and completely resolved. In addition, all necessary resources, both internal and external, have been engaged to ensure this does not happen again. Our investigation is not fully concluded, and we wish to thank the extended poker community for any and all assistance related to the matter.
Game integrity has always and continues to be of the utmost importance at Absolute Poker. The Management of Absolute Poker is appalled by these findings, and is committed to our players and to the integrity of our site and the online poker industry.
All players affected by the security breach will be identified during the audit process that has been initiated and all funds, including interest, will be returned. Absolute Poker would like to apologize for the recent events and is committed to diligently working with outside security firms, auditing firms, the extended poker community and the Kahnawake Gaming Commission to ensure the situation is entirely resolved.
A comprehensive statement will be forthcoming shortly providing more details of the situation.
The impact of this admission will likely be felt, for better or for worse, throughout the online poker community for months to come. We will update this story as more details emerge from Absolute and other sources.
