Random Number Generators (Can They Be Trusted?)

By now, there aren’t many gamblers who haven’t heard of random number generators. Every legitimate online casino on the planet employs RNGs to output results.

You are likely aware of random number generators, but you may have questions about how they work. I want to provide you with a decent understanding of how random number generators function.

More importantly, I get a lot of questions about the legitimacy of the RNGs at online casinos. Random number generators, can they even be trusted?


Let’s take a look, and you can answer for yourself.

After all, it’s your money on the line.

Random Number Generator 101

Random number generators are exactly what they sound like. They’re programs that deliver a specific number based on an arbitrary “draw.”

Several different types of RNGs exist, and they are implemented in a wide variety of applications. You are here for its application in the gambling industry.

But you will also find random number generators being used in computer simulations, statistical sampling, and even cryptography.

RNGs used by the online casinos are of the pseudo-random number generator variety.

Pseudo-random number generators stand out from other RNGs for one significant reason:

Pseudo RNGs don’t require any outside factors in determining their output.


Other RNGs may insist that numbers or data are input before delivering a number. This derivative simply needs a predetermined algorithm and a seed number.

The algorithm spits out a fresh possible result nearly a million times every second. So, the moment you have a number come up, it could be as nearly random as possible.

However, because the algorithms use mathematical equations to formulate their results, the RNGs can never be 100% random.

This fatal flaw opens up the RNGs to potential hackers. Theoretically, a hacker that was able to arm themselves with the correct algorithm and seed number could fleece the casinos for a fortune.

Of course, this would be shut down quickly, thanks to the casino’s intense security protocols. It’s unlikely, if not all-out impossible, to discover the correct combination in use by the online casinos.

Why Random Number Generators?

You may be asking yourself if the RNGs used in real money online casinos can be hacked, why have they been so widely adopted by the industry?

With the advancement in technology and the popularity of slot machines, the casinos needed to change the way they were attracting and keeping gamblers on the hook.

Clearly, the online casinos needed a way to provide virtual gamblers with their most beloved games. The riddle they had to solve was translating these spinning reels into a virtual realm while continuing to provide real and still random results.

Random number generators go far beyond keeping the slots spinning for online casinos. Without RNGs, there would be no measure for ensuring other games are kept entirely fair.

One of the biggest hurdles for early online casinos was assuring the gamblers that everything was being kept honest. The industry continues to fight this battle and is regularly updating regulations and developing innovations to ensure this.

Suppose you sit at an online blackjack table. You may occasionally feel like the deck is stacked against you.

How else could you get precisely the wrong card at precisely the wrong moment?

It’s called gambling. The algorithms at work are constantly spewing out a random result until you decide to hit. Then, this utterly random card is played, free from any outside influence or previous outcome. It’s the same as how a blackjack dealer has no control over what card you’re dealt next.

Can Cheats Exploit the RNG?

It’s possible to cheat RNGs.

But are you able to deceive the casinos that use random number generators?

Almost certainly not. While these advanced algorithms aren’t bulletproof against hackers, stringent security measures are put in place to safeguard against cheating.

This not only serves to protect the casino’s money but that of the consumer as well. Even if a potential cheat could crack the code and gain an advantage worth potentially millions, once the casino catches on, their account would immediately be shut down.

This means that the cash would quickly be recovered, and the cheater would be heading to prison. To be more precise, they’d be heading to federal prison. I hope none of you are that desperate.

The RNGs used by the online casinos are put through the paces on a regular schedule by gaming authorities. Doing so guarantees fairness and skirts heavily against systems that may be hacked from ever making it to market.

Don’t Alter Your Gameplay

Many of you are aware that I’m not a proponent of betting systems. Outside of basic strategy for blackjack or value betting on sports, I don’t see much use.

However, I am self-aware enough to understand that I can’t talk others out of using them. So, your standard bevy of systems will have the same results as an online casino using RNGs. A brick and mortar casino would yield.

Card counters beware, though. You may be able to get a decent count in a casino. But with RNGs, there is no pre-shuffled boot to draw cards.

The RNG completely randomizes the results for each hand. This implementation of random number generators effectively kills the notion of getting any sort of accurate count.

Card counting on a game using RNGs is similar to an exercise in futility. The RNGs are rigorously put through the paces by outside regulators. Until they pass the tests, casinos won’t be given their license.

RNGs Aren’t Just for Online Casinos

You may think that RNGs are limited to applications in the online gambling world. A vast majority of the games in online casinos indeed determine the random results via RNGs.

However, the live dealer games are using a human to produce the same randomness that you would find at your favorite table in Las Vegas.

Well, it’s mostly the same. Live dealer games at online casinos make a few changes to guard against cheating. Suppose you play blackjack with a live dealer in an online casino. You’ll notice that the deck is shuffled between every hand.

By the same token, you’ll find games on the Strip using the same random number generators as the online games you love.

Pretty much any game in a casino without a dealer is relying on RNGs to produce outcomes. You’ve probably even played one or more of these casino games.

The usual suspects include keno, video poker, and perhaps the most popular casino game of all video slot machines.

Slot machines are by far the most popular of the RNG games in a casino. The advancement of video technology has been paired with the RNG to create some of the most exciting slot machines available.

Of course, the casinos didn’t want the online players to reap all of the rewards and started stacking the video slot machines deep on the casino floor. The return to player is roughly the same as you will receive on classic reel slot machines.

In fact, you’ll probably see far more small incremental wins with video slots.

Random Number Generators and RTP

We already know that the RNGs are programmed to produce the same random results as you find in casino games.

Did you know that there are also measures in place to ensure the return to player falls within what is considered a fair amount?

Every machine is programmed in a manner to guarantee a consistent and balanced RTP. If the RTP is too high or low, the casino is forced to remove the RNG from operation until it can be retooled.

Painstaking measures are taken to promote the RTP being the same as you’d find in a brick and mortar casino. You should be confident that you’ll get the same RTP with random number generators online over a long enough sample size, as you’d see in Las Vegas.

Fair Play Checks and Balances

Online and brick and mortar casinos are both subject to independent checks that verify that games won’t be influenced in any way.

Some of the standard variables of concern are things like VIP accounts, any potential jackpots or huge payouts, and the amount of money on the line.

Again, any game not passing will be decommissioned until the proper corrections are made.

The extensive amount of work required to make these changes is multiplied for a land-based casino. Before anything can happen, the casino first has to notify their state’s gaming authority of the necessary tweaking.

Once, the extensive process of making the change has occurred. State inspectors perform random checks on the machine to promote fair gaming practices.

Most importantly, this allows the public to be confident that the random number generators in play are a trustworthy method for producing gaming results.

Conclusion

Random number generators are precisely what the name implies, random. Online casinos have embraced RNGs, and the most massive brick and mortar casinos in the world cement their validity.

The casinos have much to lose if they begin to have a reputation as cheaters or shady. None of the legitimate casinos are willing to risk that damage to their image.

So, can random number generators be trusted?

My answer is yes. And there are a plethora of measures in place to both protect the consumer and promote fair play.