McCook, Nebraska’s City Council members were recently given the task to determine if employees of keno outlets should be allowed to play the game. The motion to allow them to play passed by one vote.

According to manufacturers of computerized keno games they are tamper-proof. A computer chip preselects thousands of randomly chosen numbers and supposedly if someone tries to tamper with this process the whole game will shut down. But consider the accomplishments of many hackers today and how many supposedly tamper-proof programs have been successfully hacked into.

In very recent Nebraska history three Blue Springs Keno employees are charged with manipulating the game in their favor. They are charged with grand theft, using a lottery device for cheating and violating the lottery act. This case may have not been with computerized machines but rather the old fashioned type machines. But the thought that employees have plenty of time and access to try to figure out a way to dupe the system in their favor is a valid concern.

As of today, keno employees in Nebraska have the right to play the game along with the other game players according to McCook City Council members, only two of the five City Council members showed their doubts.

- 2007-10-27