Can the MM/PB bouncing balls be rigged?Prev TopicNext Topic

• Jon D

  

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  May 10, 2013, 6:12 pm

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  Do you think it's possible for the Mega Millions or Powerball bouncing balls draws to be rigged?

  You may already know of the previous case of the rigged balls in the Pennsylvania Lottery scandal. But the MM/PB Jackpot games would be harder to pull off.

  Do you think it's possible with the current format of the televised draws? How could it be done? Do you think it ever has been done? (undetected) Has anyone ever witnessed a MM/PB draw in person?
• Ronnie316

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  May 10, 2013, 6:16 pm

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  In response to Jon D

  Quote: Originally posted by Jon D on May 10, 2013

  Do you think it's possible for the Mega Millions or Powerball bouncing balls draws to be rigged?

  You may already know of the previous case of the rigged balls in the Pennsylvania Lottery scandal. But the MM/PB Jackpot games would be harder to pull off.

  Do you think it's possible with the current format of the televised draws? How could it be done? Do you think it ever has been done? (undetected) Has anyone ever witnessed a MM/PB draw in person?

  With so much money on the line, I would not be surprised to find out that it happened.
• th19940305

  

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  May 10, 2013, 6:18 pm

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  They could be, it seems that they do roll over mor then they should
• LottoBoner

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  May 10, 2013, 6:20 pm

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  In response to Ronnie316

  Quote: Originally posted by Ronnie316 on May 10, 2013

  With so much money on the line, I would not be surprised to find out that it happened.

  With so much money on the line, I dont think the risk would be worth the reward.

  It would not be wise to piss off 100 million players.
• rdgrnr

  

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  May 10, 2013, 6:23 pm

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  In response to Jon D

  Quote: Originally posted by Jon D on May 10, 2013

  Do you think it's possible for the Mega Millions or Powerball bouncing balls draws to be rigged?

  You may already know of the previous case of the rigged balls in the Pennsylvania Lottery scandal. But the MM/PB Jackpot games would be harder to pull off.

  Do you think it's possible with the current format of the televised draws? How could it be done? Do you think it ever has been done? (undetected) Has anyone ever witnessed a MM/PB draw in person?

  Anything can be rigged, even mechanical ball machines.

  But computers can be rigged to win and leave no evidence of it.
• Artist77

  

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  May 10, 2013, 6:25 pm

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  Yes, by will of my mind, I will telekinetically move the balls to the numbers I have chosen.

  
• redhot7

  

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  May 10, 2013, 6:28 pm

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  In response to LottoBoner

  Quote: Originally posted by LottoBoner on May 10, 2013

  With so much money on the line, I dont think the risk would be worth the reward.

  It would not be wise to piss off 100 million players.

  So, what would happen if a draw is rigged but they don't find out until a year later?
  
  Would they have another draw? What if the winner from the 2nd draw already discarded the ticket?
  
  What would happen to winners who didn't rig the machine but won something (big and small)? Would they have to return the money they already spent?
• PlayToWin47

  

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  May 10, 2013, 6:51 pm

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  In response to rdgrnr

  Quote: Originally posted by rdgrnr on May 10, 2013

  Anything can be rigged, even mechanical ball machines.

  But computers can be rigged to win and leave no evidence of it.

  Yup ... I agree!!!
• noise-gate

  

  * In hot pursuit of $ *

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  May 10, 2013, 6:54 pm

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  In response to redhot7

  Quote: Originally posted by redhot7 on May 10, 2013

  So, what would happen if a draw is rigged but they don't find out until a year later?
  
  Would they have another draw? What if the winner from the 2nd draw already discarded the ticket?
  
  What would happen to winners who didn't rig the machine but won something (big and small)? Would they have to return the money they already spent?

  A number of years ago this " rigging" was pulled off. Some balls were altered allowing a close friend to collect the jackpot. Somehow word got out and it was rectified. Its probably on YouTube. Since that incident the lottery folk have taken extra precautions. I think it may have happened in Illinois or one of those States,  certainly not on the West Coast.
• Jon D

  

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  May 10, 2013, 7:23 pm

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  In response to redhot7

  Quote: Originally posted by redhot7 on May 10, 2013

  So, what would happen if a draw is rigged but they don't find out until a year later?
  
  Would they have another draw? What if the winner from the 2nd draw already discarded the ticket?
  
  What would happen to winners who didn't rig the machine but won something (big and small)? Would they have to return the money they already spent?

  The draw would have to stand.

  And actually, all the other players did nothing wrong, they matched the drawn numbers to various degrees, and would keep their prizes. The lottery would not be out any more money than they would be with a fair draw, so they are covered. That number, even if rigged, is the same as any other number to the rest of the players.

  For the perps though, that's a different story. They were betting with inside information and committing fraud. Their monies would be pursued for recovery. If they did it by covering many numbers and happened to hit on a lot of 2nd/3rd prizes, that would be an unexpected loss,(except in CA pari-mutuel) but also easier to detect.

  But even if they won just the jackpot alone, the lottery would not be out any more money than they would be otherwise, it's all funded by sales. The damage is to the integrity of the game.
• GASMETERGUY

  

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  May 11, 2013, 9:11 pm

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  I believe Kentucky is the guilty State.  An employee was found guilty of shooting a drop of water in several balls thus adding to their weight.  He (or she) then played the other numbers.  Of course the ball were those ping pong type balls with all the incorrect numbers painted on them.  I say incorrect because the numbers I play don't match what pops out of the machine.

  Feel free to correct me if Kentucky was not the State.  Otherwise, my mind is made up.  Don't confuse me with facts.
• Stack47

  

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  May 11, 2013, 9:27 pm

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  In response to GASMETERGUY

  Quote: Originally posted by GASMETERGUY on May 11, 2013

  I believe Kentucky is the guilty State.  An employee was found guilty of shooting a drop of water in several balls thus adding to their weight.  He (or she) then played the other numbers.  Of course the ball were those ping pong type balls with all the incorrect numbers painted on them.  I say incorrect because the numbers I play don't match what pops out of the machine.

  Feel free to correct me if Kentucky was not the State.  Otherwise, my mind is made up.  Don't confuse me with facts.

  It happened in 1980 in Pennsylvania.

  All of the balls except 4 and 6 were weighted, meaning that the drawing was almost sure to be a combination of only 4s and 6s. The scheme was successful in that 666, an expected result, was drawn on April 24, 1980; however, the unusual betting patterns alerted authorities to the matter. The chief conspirators were sent to prison, and most of the fraudulently acquired winnings were never paid out.
• RedStang

  

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  May 11, 2013, 10:18 pm

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  They could be rigged, but test draws would probably show a problem and void them.

  
• Jon D

  

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  May 11, 2013, 10:38 pm

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  So far in voting, 3 to 1 (12:4) think they can be rigged. I didn't think it would be that much, or especially those that think it was done already! (half of those that said yes)

  I'm up for a good conspiracy theory as much as the next person, but always approach it from an analytical perspective. Just because you have physical ball draws, should not make you fall into a false sense of security. Magicians have relied on this kind of misdirection with a physical apparatus for centuries, making you think objects are more solid or larger than they appear, etc.

  I can think of a way to do it, that doesn't rely on the weight of the balls. Has to do with the timing of pulling the poop chute or pushing the plunger, but PB looks slightly harder than MM to pull off. Not completely sure if it would work because I don't know all of the things they check. But if their main response after the 1980 Triple Six Fix was more security, then the main vulnerability is still there: human greed and deception.
• PlayToWin47

  

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  May 13, 2013, 1:15 pm

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  In response to Jon D

  Quote: Originally posted by Jon D on May 10, 2013

  The draw would have to stand.

  And actually, all the other players did nothing wrong, they matched the drawn numbers to various degrees, and would keep their prizes. The lottery would not be out any more money than they would be with a fair draw, so they are covered. That number, even if rigged, is the same as any other number to the rest of the players.

  For the perps though, that's a different story. They were betting with inside information and committing fraud. Their monies would be pursued for recovery. If they did it by covering many numbers and happened to hit on a lot of 2nd/3rd prizes, that would be an unexpected loss,(except in CA pari-mutuel) but also easier to detect.

  But even if they won just the jackpot alone, the lottery would not be out any more money than they would be otherwise, it's all funded by sales. The damage is to the integrity of the game.

  And actually, all the other players did nothing wrong, they matched the drawn numbers to various degrees, and would keep their prizes. The lottery would not be out any more money than they would be with a fair draw, so they are covered. That number, even if rigged, is the same as any other number to the rest of the players.

  Sure, the players did nothing wrong, and it was great that they won (with rigged numbers) ...  but what about the players that would have / should have won had the numbers not been rigged?  They got ripped off!!!