Resolution of the Stars investigation.

[teddyFBI]

I wanted to start this new thread, because the other one had gotten quite unwieldy, surpassing in 3 days even my most popular thread to date, the ZeeJustin photo mod project. I also thought the very important developments I am going to discuss deserved their own thread.

Wow -- big, big, big news. First, the Cliff's Notes version of the events. My mother talked to a Stars executive this afternoon. After launching a full investigation that reached the very, very upper echelons of Stars management (and I do mean the real head honchos), it was discovered that Jeff had made an error in his finding that my mom had been using a bot. Both Jeff and Lee have written emails to my mother acknowledging the mistake and apologizing with both humility and extraordinary class. Jeff also apologized for the aggressive and sometimes stubborn tone that he used in his emails. I want to state up front that they really did handle this 'mea culpa' with extraordinary professionalism and class.

So where do we go from here? What I have done is written a very politely worded email to Lee (which I have pasted below) asking him to come here and address these issues. By the way, let there be no doubt how much clout 2+2 has in online poker -- Stars' management was already well aware of the monster thread without my mother saying anything about it. There is no doubt that everybody's contributions there contributed significantly to it being escalated to the level that it was so quickly, so I thank all those who contributed, and those who endorsed my integrity, even while others were assailing it. Anyway, as you can read at the very bottom of my email to Lee -- I think the real issue of concern here is obviously NOT getting a 55-year old woman's Stars account re-opened, but the implications for the rest of us, several of whom derive substantial income from online poker. I wanted to write here all about the dangers associated with the trust we put in the security of our funds at even the most well-reputed online sites, but I am positive that no matter how eloquently I addressed the subject, I could not produce a more thoughtful and piercing analysis than that provided by my mom's email to me in this post , so I will not try to "one-up" her. If anything positive can come from this on a broader scale, I hope it's a re-examination and strengthening of any and all security measures by Stars and other sites alike.

That brings me, I think, to the conclusion of this matter. All I can do now, I guess, is sit back and wait with the rest of you for someone at Stars to address the issue here, if they so choose. This has been a whirlwind few days for me (and my mother), and I hope it has been a learning experience for anyone who chose to follow along.

<font color="blue">
Dear Lee --

Wow, what a day -- my mother just called me and brought me up to date on everything, and even forwarded me the very kind emails you and Jeff wrote to her. I am glad that everthing was resolved, and that we got to the truth of the matter. As you know from my previous emails to you, I never hesitated even to put my own reputation on the line regarding this matter, because I have known this woman my entire life and her integrity and ethics are beyond reproach.

Now on to the reason I now write you -- as I think you might be aware already, I started (and have been continuously contributing to) a thread on 2+2. Here is the link:

http://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/showfl...0&amp;fpart=all

I wanted to write you because I do not think that the most recent 2 emails sent to my mother need to be posted in the thread -- despite this situation being handled less than perfectly, I still recognize that both you and Jeff are on "our side". I told my mom many times throughout this ordeal that even though Jeff's replies were written rather condescendingly, it was still somewhat refreshing that she was getting cogent, quick replies (something she would never get from Party or any other site). I am not out to embarrass anyone, especially two of the sharpest and most conscientious guys in this industry. The only reason I posted a few of Jeff's earlier emails was because my own credibility had been called into serious question in the thread and I needed to salvage the goodwill that I had built up there in my 2 years of participating in 2+2 discussions, something I'd like to continue doing.

So at the end of the day, what I'm asking is if you would kindly post in that thread to let people know the resolution of this matter, and what measures, if any, are being taken to improve security at Stars as a result of this incident. I know you read and post at 2+2 every once in a while, and think that this situation calls for a Stars comment. I have taken an awful lot of abuse for suspicion of a) fabricating the entire story and b) concealing some other immoral activity, either on my mom's part or my own. An explanation from you / Stars would go a long way toward both acknowledging my version of the events, and addressing the real issue here.

The real issue, of course, is not a 55-year old mom's ultimate vindication and ability to continue playing very low limit hold'em games. But rather it's the implications for serious players like myself who play high stakes poker at Stars, and those who post on the 2+2 boards, many of whom even make their living from online poker. I'm not exaggerating when I say that it scares us that one day we may find ourselves on the receiving end of a security investigation without having done anything wrong, and have a poker site act as judge, jury, and executioner, the only reason for which being an investigations team who has misinterpreted data and steadfastly refuses to re-examine it. In short, it's not this issue in isolation that calls for a response, but rather the broader implications for us, your loyal player base.

Thanks for listening.
Very sincerely,
</font>

*

Edit/MH: Link to original thread.

[smartalecc5]

Wow, good letter. Hope to hear something and glad it all got worked out [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

[NLSoldier]

Very nice teddy.

[censored] the haters who didnt believe you the whole time. Especially granny :P

[Baulucky]

You rock.

[UATrewqaz]

Once Granny hears a poker site actually made and admitted a mistake his universe will come crashing down at an alarming rate.

[gettym]

VNH

[pothead]

I'm impressed.

With teddy for his handeling of the issue and the bunch of morons accusing him of lying.

With stars for admitting their error and resolving it.
Everyone makes mistakes....it's when they can't admit it I have a problem with it.

And with teddys mom of course for her multitabling skills and marathon sessions.

[Mike Haven]

[ QUOTE ]
and marathon sessions.

[/ QUOTE ]

Brilliant! [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

[WhatDoesCallMean]

[ QUOTE ]
I told my mom many times throughout this ordeal that even though Jeff's replies were written rather condescendingly, it was still somewhat refreshing that she was getting cogent, quick replies (something she would never get from Party or any other site). I am not out to embarrass anyone, especially two of the sharpest and most conscientious guys in this industry.

[/ QUOTE ]

well done for getting a favourable resolution to the situation and also a well done to all here(im obviously excluding myself) for posting and making Stars sit up and take notice.

my only pain with this now is Jeff - while it is 100% true that you or your mom wouldnt have received any kind of readable replies from Party, i dont feel the point is to compare and contrast Stars and Party......if they only try to improve on the CS that Party offers, it is a very poor state of affairs.

also, while i cannot and would not try to belittle either Jeff or Lee, stating that they are two of the sharpest and most conscientious guys in the industry may be an exaggeration.......one was too stubborn and pig headed to admit that perhaps he made a mistake and the other was willing to take his word on it.

AND, why is it that Stars seem unwilling to listen to individual complaints about a situation but they will go to the highest levels when there is a massive long thread in 2+2 about it? this is the second time in a few short months that they have only acted once the zoo got their knickers in a twist bout something.....to me, this is not good enough - they are either a market leader or they are not.

again, well done on clearing both your own and your mothers names....now go visit her more often [img]/images/graemlins/tongue.gif[/img]

[Sandra Bullett]

Well done Teddy, in so many ways.

Skipping further congratulations, there's still some meat to this issue:


[ QUOTE ]
it was discovered that Jeff had made an error in his finding that my mom had been using a bot.

[/ QUOTE ]


1) I presume (but please confirm?) that your mother did NOT play continuously for 43 hours. If so, how could Jeff make such an asinine mistake? And then, how could he continue to make it when asked to check? Surely they have a software program that reports on total playing time! (step 1 of "Bot Detection 101").

2) What procedures are Stars going to put in place to prevent repeats of this balls-up?

3) In particular, is there going to be an appeals process (which will NOT have Jeff in the loop)?

4) Is there a job vacancy opening up at Stars? What are the stock options like?

5) Which 2+2 male member is going to be the first to take your mum a bottle of champagne?


Well done Teddy,
and poorly done Stars.