Is Online Poker Rigged?

For those of us who have grown up with the much loved but sworn at British pub fruit machines, the idea that software can be "rigged" is an accepted one. When you do finally get up top to the bonus feature games why do you keep landing on the "bonus" square? If the odds are 1 in 12 that it will be lower than your 2, when you choose higher, why does the 1 come in so often?

Fruit machines and slot machines payout ratio, controlled by software, can be adjusted. Online poker is also controlled by software, so it could be adjusted or rigged but is it?

How do Poker sites make their profit?
Slot machines are designed to make money from the payout ratio, the money you win comes from the machines on profits. Online poker sites make there money from the rake and tournament fees, not directly from your winnings. An online poker site makes no more or less money depending on who wins that cash pot or tournament hand.

Poker sites do not want you to lose lots of money because the more money players have in their accounts the more they will churn it over. This is the reason why the Poker Stars tournament payout structure exists, not to reward the players who make the money with great Return On Investment (ROI) but to give as many players as possible more money to churn over. Why else do you think you can play a $million tournament, beat 6000 people, get to the Final Table and if you finish 9th you only $12,000?

Of course there is the argument that the more action hands in cash games and tournaments mean more rake and the tournaments being over quicker. The issue here is of trust. You play a slot machine knowing it’s designed to win for the house.

One of the answer to the question "Is online poker rigged?" comes down to profits. Poker sites in total makes millions if not billions per year. Why would they jeopardise a guaranteed no risk business and profit? Any hint of the software being rigged could destroy their credibility and along with it a very healthy cash cow.

Super User Accounts Scandal on Ultimate Bet
But what of the Super User Accounts scandal on Ultimate Bet (UB)? This was not the actual RNG software that was rigged, this was to do with access to information and may actually prove that online poker is not rigged. The owners/workers of UB needed to have a Super User Account to see player’s cards, instead of just having the software rigged or giving themselves a "good card" option. They also had to use other players IP addresses to hide their activities.

In the Poker RNG God millions trust and are entrusted
At the end of the day it is a matter of trust. Online poker could be rigged, any software game can be rigged. Would millions of players everyday deposit their hard earned money into something they thought was rigged?