HOT LOTTO DRAWING CHEAT CHARGED WITH RIGGING MORE JACKPOTS

Oct 9, 2015, 8:50 pm (45 comments)

Insider Buzz

Computerized drawing nightmare: Colorado, Wisconsin jackpots may have been rigged

Authorities say criminal enterprise ongoing for years

Includes video report

By Todd Northrop

Authorities on Friday filed new charges against a former Iowa Lottery security officer who was convicted months ago of rigging a Hot Lotto game so he could win a $14 million jackpot.

Authorities are now asking the public to report any similar cases around the country.

Representatives for the Iowa Lottery and the Iowa Department of Public Safety said Eddie Tipton was charged with ongoing criminal conduct in the tampering of lottery equipment in connection with additional lottery game winnings in Colorado and Wisconsin, a class B felony.

Tipton turned himself in to authorities on Friday and later bonded out of jail.

Nick Sarcone, an attorney representing Tipton, said his client has "voluntarily answered these charges and he's going to fight them."

Court records show Eddie Tipton was charged with tampering with the lottery so his brother, Tommy Tipton, and his friend, Robert Rhodes, could win prizes.

Authorities said Tommy Tipton won a lottery prize of more than $568,000 in Colorado in Nov. 23, 2005. The $4.8 million jackpot involved a $568,990 payout that a friend of Eddie Tipton's brother claimed for Tommy.

Authorities said that Robert Rhodes won a more than $783,000 lottery prize in Wisconsin on Dec. 29, 2007. This case involved a $2 million jackpot and $783,257 payout to Delta S Holdings, LLC that is owned by Rhodes.

Rhodes and his holding company are currently the target of criminal proceedings involved with Tipton's attempt to claim the $14 million jackpot in Iowa in 2010. (See Extradition trial begins in $16.5M Hot Lotto fraud case, Lottery Post, June 7, 2015.)

The additional charge against Tipton happened after officials received a tip about Tipton's brother and his alleged collection of money from a lottery game in Colorado. That led to the investigation into the Wisconsin winning.

The winnings in Colorado and Wisconsin were through tickets on which the player chose their own numbers, rather than letting the lottery terminal generate a "Quick Pick" (random numbers).  Both states employ a computerized drawing system built at the Iowa-based Multi-State Lottery Association, authorities said. The association, also known as MUSL, is where Tipton was director of information security. In Tipton's Hot Lotto case, he was accused of inserting a program, known as a rootkit, into the computer that picks winning numbers for the game. The rootkit destroyed itself after the drawing to eliminate evidence of the tampering.

Tipton had been working for MUSL since 2003 and was promoted to information security director in 2013. As an employee, Tipton was prohibited from playing the lottery in Iowa. He was fired after his January arrest.

Authorities called the new charge part of an active investigation and released few details about the circumstances of the winnings in Colorado and Wisconsin. They asked the public to report any suspected cases of lottery fraud, while adding that security measures are in place to make lottery games secure.

A jury convicted Tipton in July of two counts of fraud for rigging a computerized Hot Lotto game in 2010. Prosecutors say Tipton inserted a program into the computer that picks numbers and then bought tickets.

Tipton was sentenced to 10 years behind bars for the crime.  (See MUSL security worker who rigged drawing gets 10 years, Lottery Post, Sept. 9, 2015.)

Tipton has denied the charges and is appealing his conviction. He turned himself in Friday on the new charge. He posted a $25,000 bond and was released from the Polk County Jail.

From a lottery player's perspective, one of the most startling aspects of this case is that state lotteries continue to switch over to computerized drawings — the same types of drawing systems that apparently were rigged on multiple occasions.

(See ILLINOIS LOTTERY MOVES TO COMPUTERIZED DRAWINGS, Lottery Post, Sept. 25, 2015.)

Computerized drawings also have been responsible for many "glitches" over the years, in which huge swaths of purchased lottery tickets had no chance of winning a prize because of faulty computer systems. 

In 2013, an Arizona Lottery computerized drawing glitch went on for two months, with many tickets having no chance of winning.

In the summer of 2007, the Tennessee Lottery switched from real lottery ball drawings to a computerized drawing system.  One month later it was discovered that the computerized drawing system was flawed from the start, with huge numbers of purchased lottery tickets never having a possibility of winning.

In 2005 a California Lottery computerized drawing glitch rendered large numbers of tickets unable to win a prize, and the problem was not fixed for months, when lottery players started seeing that certain numbers were never being chosen.

There are many other examples of computerized drawings with glitches and errors — and now outright rigging.

More than a decade ago, the Lottery Post website first alerted the industry to the issues surrounding computerized lottery drawings in the Petition for True Lottery Drawings.

In the petition, Lottery Post Founder Todd Northrop warned of the dangers of hacking, and specifically that a knowledgeable hacker could disguise even the fact that the drawing system was hacked.  Northrop wrote:

Computer hacking is a term that has entered the daily lexicon because of its prevalence within every aspect of computers.  Hackers can produce code that goes undetected for long periods of time, and causes unseen problems.  Why do the state lotteries think that they are immune from hacking, when some of the most secure computers in the world have been hacked into?  Worse, a state employee "on the take" could insert malicious computer code into the drawing process that could specify the exact numbers that are drawn.  A crafty programmer could keep this secret for a long time.

While it is good news that the state lotteries are pursuing criminals who rig computerized drawings and fraudulently claim prizes, that is essentially shutting the barn door after the horse has escaped. 

How many millions of dollars were spent by lottery players with no chance of winning because the jackpot was rigged?

Why do state lotteries continue trying to save "small potatoes" money by ditching real lottery ball drawings, knowing the terrible industry record with regard to computerized drawings?

Most importantly, will lottery players speak loudly with their wallets, financially forcing the state lotteries to bring back real lottery ball drawings?

There are indeed some state lotteries employing the very best in open and transparent drawing procedures.  (See Texas Lottery drawings inspire confidence, Lottery Post, Aug. 2, 2009.)

There is also one state that did bring back real lottery ball drawings for some of its drawings. (See Want to be on TV? Hoosier Lottery searches for on-air draw talent, Lottery Post, July 26, 2013.)

But it may take tremendous financial pressure from lottery players of all stripes to force state lotteries that employ computerized drawings to see the error of their ways.  Will that ever happen?  Perhaps it depends on how angry and determined lottery players get over wasting their money on tickets with no chance of winning.

VIDEO: Watch the press conference

Lottery Post Staff

Comments

LottoBux's avatarLottoBux

If It Happened Once Already,Why Can't It Happen Again.

It's Pretty Sad That This Is The State That RNG Games Are In Right Now.

   WTG Todd On Your Pursuit Of The Petition for True Lottery Drawings. Cheers

four4me

great it's out in the open maybe now they will kill cmputerized drawings.

DELotteryPlyr's avatarDELotteryPlyr

Time to shut this game down, I played a little when in Delaware and when I go over to DE sometimes.  Actually hit a bit more on this than any other jackpot game.  But clearly this game is compromised.  We will learn that there are alot more people involved than these.  Only option is to shut it down and open a new game using balls vs computer. 

VenomV12

This sure makes you trust the lotteries, doesn't it? I mean we have proof that one game can definitely be rigged, how are we sure that most if not all of them can be? 

djpowerball1234

If you have anything run by a computer, you can guarantee that it will be hacked or scammed .  In the credit card industry which is all computers and some of the greatest computer minds in the world can not keep the criminals from getting your card numbers, what makes them think that a computer can be used to have a RNG to honestly run a multi million dollar lottery fairly. Random number generators are a myth , all they are is an algorithm that stops on a set of numbers that are generated under a specific amount of time or cycles.. Not even random but a set of numbers in a formula that can be determined or programmed to come up at a certain time...If you have ever read computer code and if you think that a smart criminals can write a line of code and insert it undetectable, they can, I have seen it done and in 150000 lines of code trust me you wont find it even if I told you where to look...

RNG GAMES ARE FIXED Evil Looking

djpowerball1234

Quote: Originally posted by djpowerball1234 on Oct 9, 2015

If you have anything run by a computer, you can guarantee that it will be hacked or scammed .  In the credit card industry which is all computers and some of the greatest computer minds in the world can not keep the criminals from getting your card numbers, what makes them think that a computer can be used to have a RNG to honestly run a multi million dollar lottery fairly. Random number generators are a myth , all they are is an algorithm that stops on a set of numbers that are generated under a specific amount of time or cycles.. Not even random but a set of numbers in a formula that can be determined or programmed to come up at a certain time...If you have ever read computer code and if you think that a smart criminals can write a line of code and insert it undetectable, they can, I have seen it done and in 150000 lines of code trust me you wont find it even if I told you where to look...

RNG GAMES ARE FIXED Evil Looking

and if you don't believe me Highlight the spaces after this text...left click and hold like you were going to copy ..,Told YOU THAT YOU Wouldn't EVEN SEE IT

ElinaSammy2081's avatarElinaSammy2081

Quote: Originally posted by djpowerball1234 on Oct 9, 2015

If you have anything run by a computer, you can guarantee that it will be hacked or scammed .  In the credit card industry which is all computers and some of the greatest computer minds in the world can not keep the criminals from getting your card numbers, what makes them think that a computer can be used to have a RNG to honestly run a multi million dollar lottery fairly. Random number generators are a myth , all they are is an algorithm that stops on a set of numbers that are generated under a specific amount of time or cycles.. Not even random but a set of numbers in a formula that can be determined or programmed to come up at a certain time...If you have ever read computer code and if you think that a smart criminals can write a line of code and insert it undetectable, they can, I have seen it done and in 150000 lines of code trust me you wont find it even if I told you where to look...

RNG GAMES ARE FIXED Evil Looking

I Agree! NY Take 5 example A:


03/20/2014 03-04-31-33-35

03/13/2014 03-04-31-33-35

go check it out only seven days and the same numbers repeat themselves when there are more than five hundred thousand combinations I believe NY is rigged too. 

Nikkicute's avatarNikkicute

What the heck!! This guy was able to do this in other states!!No No

mediabrat's avatarmediabrat

Quote: Originally posted by ElinaSammy2081 on Oct 9, 2015

I Agree! NY Take 5 example A:


03/20/2014 03-04-31-33-35

03/13/2014 03-04-31-33-35

go check it out only seven days and the same numbers repeat themselves when there are more than five hundred thousand combinations I believe NY is rigged too. 

This thread is about games that are drawn using computerized random number generators.  NY uses traditional ball sets and machines.  Do try and keep up.

savagegoose's avatarsavagegoose

We have a new game here, have been thinking i shouldnt play it because its the 1st ddraw here in australia that has a prize of an annuity not a cash lunp sum. and i dont want to encourage that sort of shenanigans.  but this talk of RNG draws had me go to the rules and look up  how the nymbers are drawn i found this

"10 NUMBERS  will be drawn from a drawing device containing 37 numbers from 1 to 37 inclusive. "

 

 

now no mention of a ball drop, or balls just a device containing numbers

my cell phone is called a device could this be a nice wordy way of not clearly explaining how the numbers are selected?

grwurston's avatargrwurston

Quote: Originally posted by djpowerball1234 on Oct 9, 2015

and if you don't believe me Highlight the spaces after this text...left click and hold like you were going to copy ..,Told YOU THAT YOU Wouldn't EVEN SEE IT

I believe you. WOW!!!

TnTicketlosers's avatarTnTicketlosers

Mr.Investigator come on down to Tennessee PLEASE

slurpee

I still can't figure out ANY good reason calotto pulled video of slp drawings!!!

Calotto had/made a statement (when they pulled video) on their slp page, that they were still conducting ball drops, and if you wanted to watch you could attend the ball drops in person at their Sacramento hq... 

Recently I searched the slp page on the calotto site for that statement, and was unable to find the statement??? Did calotto quietly switch slp to a computerized draw???

Edit:  I just visited the calotto site to double check and the slp FAQ page doesn't even explain how draws are conducted... Unlike the fantasy 5 page.... Hmmmm???

sully16's avatarsully16

I will never trust the RNG ever.

noise-gate

It may well be that Tipton is a Grandmaster at this- what I would like to know is where are the other Sorcerer Apprentices?  Someone had to have taught him know to pull this off & he in turn taught others. 

butch2030's avatarbutch2030

To view/download combinations and patterns found in the Hot Lotto Game -- Go To --  https://app.box.com/s/0dsuurqotqlzwqu9ce0n

Please advise of any questions and/or problems.

Good Luck & Best Wishes To All...........................................

butch2030's avatarbutch2030

Quote: Originally posted by savagegoose on Oct 10, 2015

We have a new game here, have been thinking i shouldnt play it because its the 1st ddraw here in australia that has a prize of an annuity not a cash lunp sum. and i dont want to encourage that sort of shenanigans.  but this talk of RNG draws had me go to the rules and look up  how the nymbers are drawn i found this

"10 NUMBERS  will be drawn from a drawing device containing 37 numbers from 1 to 37 inclusive. "

 

 

now no mention of a ball drop, or balls just a device containing numbers

my cell phone is called a device could this be a nice wordy way of not clearly explaining how the numbers are selected?

Tomorrow's numbers are 2, 14, 37, 6, 12, 28, 32, 18, 4, & 22.

The drawing device containing 37 numbers from 1 to 37 inclusive will be a cardboard box & I will select the 10 numbers by hand.

Trust me....................................................................

Oh by the way, my brother has the winning numbers on a ticket for tomorrow, so there will be at least 1 winner, maybe more, depending on who reads this.

earthdragon72

This already happened before in Arizona.

tnwinner

TENNESSEE uses a RNG. It is time for that and the top lottery executive Rebecca Paul Hargrave to leave. Tennesse draws have glitches. We had a good lottery until they started the RNG. Now it sucks

TnTicketlosers's avatarTnTicketlosers

Its sucked from the beginning tnwinner.I really knew it when they dropped tripples the worst 2 ice days of the year,they dont care to keep it hid either.Till she leaves or it's changed I wont play.

eddessaknight's avatareddessaknight

Quote: Originally posted by sully16 on Oct 10, 2015

I will never trust the RNG ever.

I Agree!

All machines can be rigged & some are, there's plethora of published news stories world wide as proof.

 

Eddessa_Knight Patriot

sincere's avatarsincere

somebody please report the North Carolina lottery some fishy things are going on and we all know it !!!!!!  I Agree!

Todd's avatarTodd

Quote: Originally posted by sincere on Oct 10, 2015

somebody please report the North Carolina lottery some fishy things are going on and we all know it !!!!!!  I Agree!

North Carolina is one of the good guys that uses a real lottery ball drawing.  Sorry things have been unlucky for you, but at least it's much better to know that the balls just aren't bouncing your way rather than having the possibility that someone is rigging a computerized drawing.

savagegoose's avatarsavagegoose

Quote: Originally posted by butch2030 on Oct 10, 2015

Tomorrow's numbers are 2, 14, 37, 6, 12, 28, 32, 18, 4, & 22.

The drawing device containing 37 numbers from 1 to 37 inclusive will be a cardboard box & I will select the 10 numbers by hand.

Trust me....................................................................

Oh by the way, my brother has the winning numbers on a ticket for tomorrow, so there will be at least 1 winner, maybe more, depending on who reads this.

so you're paying your brother $20k a  month for 20 years?

picktowin's avatarpicktowin

I would like to know why it took them so long before they  caught this guy what he was doing. I am from Wisconsin and I think they need to pay back the Wisconsin people money. All of uspiured money in and couldn't win if we wanted to with all that crap going on. Apparently the head honcho at the lottery head quarters don't know what their doing.

Coin Toss's avatarCoin Toss

Quote: Originally posted by eddessaknight on Oct 10, 2015

I Agree!

All machines can be rigged & some are, there's plethora of published news stories world wide as proof.

 

Eddessa_Knight Patriot

Edessa_Knight,

There were a bunch of bars in Vegas back in the late 1980s that were all part of a progressive Royal flush jackpot on video poker machines. All the machines were set never to hit a royal.
___________________________________________________________________

This article makes the timing of Illinois going to computerized drawings very suspicious.

LottoMetro's avatarLottoMetro

Quote: Originally posted by Coin Toss on Oct 11, 2015

Edessa_Knight,

There were a bunch of bars in Vegas back in the late 1980s that were all part of a progressive Royal flush jackpot on video poker machines. All the machines were set never to hit a royal.
___________________________________________________________________

This article makes the timing of Illinois going to computerized drawings very suspicious.

Amusingly, a few years ago I came across some $500 slot machines set to 25% payout. I couldn't figure out how the casino was getting away with it until I realized they only had to adhere to an "average" payout and during certain seasons they would set the machines to 110% etc.

Drenick1's avatarDrenick1

I agree with the consensus of many here to simply stay away from RNG lotteries as well as ALL slot machines. I am curious if other states that utilize RNG's are on the radar for fraudulent activities? i.e. TN.

HoLeeKau's avatarHoLeeKau

If it's proven he did this, he needs to spend life in prison without parole sharing a cell with Bernie Madoff.   What he did eroded public trust when his job specifically charged him with gaining/keeping our trust.

JADELottery's avatarJADELottery

This wouldn't even be a problem if everyone could just claim prizes anonymously.... geesh.

It's the best controversial reason yet for Quick Picks only, people picking their own numbers is a security risk.

cbr$'s avatarcbr$

I'm a Hoosier [snowbird] . I want to see the drawing. It makes me wonder what these Lottery Headquarter are really thinking about when they option for computerized drawing. You have not save any money if it end up with loss of credibility & lawsuits. The fact that they got a warnings before it happen they could be hack or rig & not listen is crazy to me.    To the hacker you're just another challenge. Everything in these stories, scream stick to live drawings. Numbers not even program in to be drawn sound like a nightmare to me. It just my point of view.

HoLeeKau's avatarHoLeeKau

Quote: Originally posted by JADELottery on Oct 11, 2015

This wouldn't even be a problem if everyone could just claim prizes anonymously.... geesh.

It's the best controversial reason yet for Quick Picks only, people picking their own numbers is a security risk.

I don't believe anyone anywhere can claim anonymously.  AFAIK all lotteries vet the winners and make sure they don't owe child support, back taxes, etc.

So the push from some of us to be able to remain anonymous (names not released to the press or the public) would not have allowed this man's cheating to go undiscovered.

RJOh's avatarRJOh

Quote: Originally posted by JADELottery on Oct 11, 2015

This wouldn't even be a problem if everyone could just claim prizes anonymously.... geesh.

It's the best controversial reason yet for Quick Picks only, people picking their own numbers is a security risk.

If you eliminated self picks then lotteries would be like raffles where a winner has to be drawn from the tickets sold every drawing and the jackpots couldn't continue to accumulate after each drawing. 

Why would people buy tickets in a lottery where there in no guaranteed of a winner or even the possibility of a winner?

What ever the rules are make no difference if no one buys tickets.

Bleudog101

Just saw the tail end of the ABC news story on this, will go on-line to see if its entirety can be found!

Stack47

Quote: Originally posted by Nikkicute on Oct 10, 2015

What the heck!! This guy was able to do this in other states!!No No

Hot Lotto is a multi-state game drawn in Iowa where Tipon worked.

Coin Toss's avatarCoin Toss

Quote: Originally posted by HoLeeKau on Oct 11, 2015

I don't believe anyone anywhere can claim anonymously.  AFAIK all lotteries vet the winners and make sure they don't owe child support, back taxes, etc.

So the push from some of us to be able to remain anonymous (names not released to the press or the public) would not have allowed this man's cheating to go undiscovered.

HoLeeKau,

Your post made me think of a situation where a time traveler wins a jackpot and the lottery people vet him or her.

"How'd you pick the numbers?"

"I looked at previous results and then came back to this year."

"No, seriously."

"I just told you, seriously."

"We can't pay you until you tell us the real deal."

Bang Head

KY Floyd's avatarKY Floyd

Quote: Originally posted by JADELottery on Oct 11, 2015

This wouldn't even be a problem if everyone could just claim prizes anonymously.... geesh.

It's the best controversial reason yet for Quick Picks only, people picking their own numbers is a security risk.

If somebody can rig the drawing computer what makes you think they can't make a terminal spit out the numbers they want?

It's the security procedures that affect access and manipulation of the lottery's computers that matter. The problem with the Hot Lotto incident isn't that it's possible to write code that affects the drawing. It's that somebody could install that code and that it could then go undetected for more than a month. Even with those problems, the drawing computer was still far more secure than the thousands of lottery terminals sitting on store counters.

KY Floyd's avatarKY Floyd

Quote: Originally posted by RJOh on Oct 11, 2015

If you eliminated self picks then lotteries would be like raffles where a winner has to be drawn from the tickets sold every drawing and the jackpots couldn't continue to accumulate after each drawing. 

Why would people buy tickets in a lottery where there in no guaranteed of a winner or even the possibility of a winner?

What ever the rules are make no difference if no one buys tickets.

  1. If you eliminate self picks then lotteries would be exactly like the ones we have now, except that 100& of tickets would be QP instead of just 70 to 80%.
  2. People buy millions of tickets every week for lotteries where a winner isn't guaranteed.
  3. Please tell us about this imaginary lottery where a winner isn't even possible.
RJOh's avatarRJOh

Quote: Originally posted by Stack47 on Oct 11, 2015

Hot Lotto is a multi-state game drawn in Iowa where Tipon worked.

He should have traveled to one of those states to buy his crooked ticket or maybe he had in the past and just got lazy the last time when he got caught.

RJOh's avatarRJOh

Quote: Originally posted by KY Floyd on Oct 12, 2015

  1. If you eliminate self picks then lotteries would be exactly like the ones we have now, except that 100& of tickets would be QP instead of just 70 to 80%.
  2. People buy millions of tickets every week for lotteries where a winner isn't guaranteed.
  3. Please tell us about this imaginary lottery where a winner isn't even possible.

"Please tell us about this imaginary lottery where a winner isn't even possible."

If a lottery is run like a raffle where only the terminals pick which numbers are sold and have a drawing that picks a winning number that wasn't sold then you have a lottery that a winner isn't possible.

Lotteries with self picks also draw winning numbers that aren't sold but it was possible for someone to have picked that number.

I don't think many people would buy tickets for a lottery ran that way, I know I wouldn't.

mypiemaster's avatarmypiemaster

Corky{got a <snip> for C but not for R}, confident and carelessness are usually the main ingredients that bring down a crook.

Stack47

Quote: Originally posted by RJOh on Oct 12, 2015

He should have traveled to one of those states to buy his crooked ticket or maybe he had in the past and just got lazy the last time when he got caught.

Maybe he didn't want people asking "why does the Hot Lotto winners always come from Iowa?"

realtorjim

Quote: Originally posted by Stack47 on Oct 12, 2015

Maybe he didn't want people asking "why does the Hot Lotto winners always come from Iowa?"

More than likely true. I believe the downfall came from someone in the know who reported it. Probably didn't get as much pie as they thought they should get or only knew someone who did get pie but they didn't and couldn't stand the thought of someone else getting dessert and they didn't. To many people in the kitchen and this always happens. Now, the real question is how many kitchens only have one cook. Thus no one to even know they made a pie let alone share it or having someone discover the secret family recipe. But to bake a delicious pie pure ball drawings must end and RNGs be nstalled.

Technics

All while assuring the public that there is NO WAY THAT ANYONE CAN CHEAT THE GAME........OK !!!

KY Floyd's avatarKY Floyd

Quote: Originally posted by RJOh on Oct 12, 2015

"Please tell us about this imaginary lottery where a winner isn't even possible."

If a lottery is run like a raffle where only the terminals pick which numbers are sold and have a drawing that picks a winning number that wasn't sold then you have a lottery that a winner isn't possible.

Lotteries with self picks also draw winning numbers that aren't sold but it was possible for someone to have picked that number.

I don't think many people would buy tickets for a lottery ran that way, I know I wouldn't.

You're confused about how it works.

The drawing can result in any of the possible combinations being selected, and that combination may or may not match a combination that was played. As long as at least one combination has been played it's possible that the combination that is drawn will match it, and there will be a winner. Unless every possible combination is played (which has never happened in a jackpot game with many millions of possible combinations) a winner is never guaranteed. In most drawings for jackpot games there is no winner, but a winner is always possible.

How the combinations people play are chosen is completely irrelevant to whether or not a winner is possible.All that matters is that combinations are played and a combination is drawn.

How the combinations are chosen will have a minor effect on how likely a winner is. When people choose their own numbers they tend to favor a subset of the numbers in the matrix, so for a given number of tickets sold fewer combinations are used. Randomly generated combinations don't favor a limited subset, so more combinations are used for a given number of tickets sold. That means that rather than making it impossible to win limiting tickets to QP's would make a winner somewhat more likely.

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