Security Check on New PokerStars Michigan Account?

[Banofshrecasino]

I just downloaded stars today. I made 3 deposits to get the new player bonus. Immediately after my third deposit my account was restricted for a "random security check". So not only can I not play but I also can't withdraw any money. From what I've read they can take weeks or even months to unrestrict your account. Apparently some people have been requested address and identity verification. First off they ask to verify your identity when you sign up; second they don't tell you when they ask for your address that it needs to be an official address so that could definitely cause problems. I think the site is a huge scam honestly. In blackjack it seems you will lose more hands in a row the higher you bet. If you're just playing poker maybe it's ok as long as you don't get hit with a "random security check" and get locked out of your account. They even use the same exact style of blackjack tables FanDual uses which is even worse when it comes to the level of taking your money. THESE ARE NOT REAL casinos! I don't think they have nearly the same regulations real casinos have so they can take more of your money faster. STAY AWAY!

 

[fundiver199]

I just downloaded stars today. I made 3 deposits to get the new player bonus. Immediately after my third deposit my account was restricted for a "random security check". So not only can I not play but I also can't withdraw any money. From what I've read they can take weeks or even months to unrestrict your account. Apparently some people have been requested address and identity verification. First off they ask to verify your identity when you sign up; second they don't tell you when they ask for your address that it needs to be an official address so that could definitely cause problems. I think the site is a huge scam honestly. In Blackjack it seems you will lose more hands in a row the higher you bet. If you're just playing poker maybe it's ok as long as you don't get hit with a "random security check" and get locked out of your account. They even use the same exact style of blackjack tables FanDual uses which is even worse when it comes to the level of taking your money. THESE ARE NOT REAL CASINOS! I don't think they have nearly the same regulations real casinos have so they can take more of your money faster. STAY AWAY!

Welcome to the forum. If you have something, you like to discuss, you should start a new thread instead of posting in a 7 year old thread about a completely different topic. online poker is not banned in Michigan, where you live. This is the whole reason, why you were able to open an account on pokerstars Michigan, which is a legal and regulated site in your state. So no. Its not a scam, and you are very lucky, that unlike most americans you can play on regulated sites. This is the dream for many poker players living elsewhere in the USA.

As for the restrictions placed on your account the security check was likely triggered by you making multible deposits in the same day, which is unusual behaviour. And yes it is common, that online gambling sites require identity and address verification. This is to prevent fraud, and its both a government requirement and good for the integrity of the game. Luckily its very simple, since you just send them a copy of for instance your passport, a utility bill in your name and the credit card used to deposit, and for me at least this has never taken more than a day or two, before my documents were approved.

 

[Tammy]

second they don't tell you when they ask for your address that it needs to be an official address so that could definitely cause problems

@fundiver199 has already posted a great reply - and I would echo all of what he has said already. But I feel the need to call out this part of your post...and I am not trying to be rude, but I'm genuinely curious: why would you not provide an official address? Of course that will cause you issues down the road. When dealing with anything anywhere you are making purchase and exchanging money, you should use the correct info. For all you know they may have done an address check and discovered it was bogus, and that's why they put a hold on your account? Could be that or what FD is saying above.

PokerStars Michigan is highly regulated by The Michigan Gaming Control Board. They had to apply for a license, and follow all the rules and regulations to a T, or they will get smacked with fines, or worse, shutdown by the state. Some of the regulation will definitely have to do with maintaining game integrity, but also a huge part of it is having safety measures and practices in place when they see signs of problem gambling. Certainly making three deposits back to back could be a red flag, particularly if you kept trying to use a 1st deposit bonus multiple times. If I were you, I would provide the info that they asked for, as well as be forth-coming about the false address you gave. I wish I could play real money games on PokerStars. But over here in California I can only do play money.

Good luck, and I hope you get it worked out!

 

[fundiver199]

Certainly making three deposits back to back could be a red flag

Making back to back deposits is clearly a red flag from a responsible gaming point of view. Several years ago I wanted to top up my PokerStars account using a credit card, but for whatever reason the payment failed twice. I then made a bank transfer not knowing, that it would take 2-3 days, before the money was available for me to play with. So I made another deposit using a different credit card, which worked.

However as soon as that deposit had gone through, a message popped up saying, that restrictions had been placed on my account due to a "routine security check". And then 5-10 minutes later another message saying, that the security check was now completed and the restrictions lifted. So I guess, they just needed to verify, that I was not on some wild gambling spree, and perhaps that both credit cards actually belonged to me.

 

[member401988]

I just downloaded stars today. I made 3 deposits to get the new player bonus. Immediately after my third deposit my account was restricted for a "random security check". So not only can I not play but I also can't withdraw any money. From what I've read they can take weeks or even months to unrestrict your account. Apparently some people have been requested address and identity verification. First off they ask to verify your identity when you sign up; second they don't tell you when they ask for your address that it needs to be an official address so that could definitely cause problems. I think the site is a huge scam honestly. In Blackjack it seems you will lose more hands in a row the higher you bet. If you're just playing poker maybe it's ok as long as you don't get hit with a "random security check" and get locked out of your account. They even use the same exact style of blackjack tables FanDual uses which is even worse when it comes to the level of taking your money. THESE ARE NOT REAL CASINOS! I don't think they have nearly the same regulations real casinos have so they can take more of your money faster. STAY AWAY!

I'm glad that there are always new proofs, I had already told many people all the time!

 

[member401988]

Welcome to the forum. If you have something, you like to discuss, you should start a new thread instead of posting in a 7 year old thread about a completely different topic. Online poker is not banned in Michigan, where you live. This is the whole reason, why you were able to open an account on PokerStars Michigan, which is a legal and regulated site in your state. So no. Its not a scam, and you are very lucky, that unlike most americans you can play on regulated sites. This is the dream for many poker players living elsewhere in the USA.

As for the restrictions placed on your account the security check was likely triggered by you making multible deposits in the same day, which is unusual behaviour. And yes it is common, that online gambling sites require identity and address verification. This is to prevent fraud, and its both a government requirement and good for the integrity of the game. Luckily its very simple, since you just send them a copy of for instance your passport, a utility bill in your name and the credit card used to deposit, and for me at least this has never taken more than a day or two, before my documents were approved.

if there are no big problems at that moment, the person just didn't understand things

 

[Suns of Beaches]

Making back to back deposits is clearly a red flag from a responsible gaming point of view. Several years ago I wanted to top up my PokerStars account using a credit card, but for whatever reason the payment failed twice. I then made a bank transfer not knowing, that it would take 2-3 days, before the money was available for me to play with. So I made another deposit using a different credit card, which worked.

However as soon as that deposit had gone through, a message popped up saying, that restrictions had been placed on my account due to a "routine security check". And then 5-10 minutes later another message saying, that the security check was now completed and the restrictions lifted. So I guess, they just needed to verify, that I was not on some wild gambling spree, and perhaps that both credit cards actually belonged to me.

Making back to back deposits is no problem on most sites and if u have a verified account. I did this multiple times on Stars and ACR. Sometimes i even only deposited with the intention to send to another player and this also worked most of the time. I always used ewallets that already were funded long before the deposit.

U most likely got flaged there because u used a credit card. And even more likely because u were even using different payment methods in short time and one being a credit card that could easily be in another name than urs.

But its not a general red flag if someone deposits multiple times in a short time. Sites have deposit limits and in it should not matter how u will use that limit. Obviously there are expections but 2-3 deposits in short time should not lead to any problems when the deposit method is the same and the account verified.

 

[fundiver199]

U most likely got flaged there because u used a credit card. And even more likely because u were even using different payment methods in short time and one being a credit card that could easily be in another name than urs.

Yes that makes sense and is, what I thought in the moment as well. First two failed attempts of depositing with a credit card, then a bank transfer, and then a deposit using another credit card all in like 15 minutes or so. Pretty reasonable that they wanted to check, what was going on. And as I said, it only took them 5-10 minutes, so no big deal

 

[Luvepoker]

I just downloaded stars today. I made 3 deposits to get the new player bonus. Immediately after my third deposit my account was restricted for a "random security check". So not only can I not play but I also can't withdraw any money. From what I've read they can take weeks or even months to unrestrict your account. Apparently some people have been requested address and identity verification. First off they ask to verify your identity when you sign up; second they don't tell you when they ask for your address that it needs to be an official address so that could definitely cause problems. I think the site is a huge scam honestly. In Blackjack it seems you will lose more hands in a row the higher you bet. If you're just playing poker maybe it's ok as long as you don't get hit with a "random security check" and get locked out of your account. They even use the same exact style of blackjack tables FanDual uses which is even worse when it comes to the level of taking your money. THESE ARE NOT REAL CASINOS! I don't think they have nearly the same regulations real casinos have so they can take more of your money faster. STAY AWAY!

I cant beat the comment of Tammy and Fundiver but would like to add some extra thought.

What if someone got your credit card number or banking details. If someone did and started to make multiple deposit to a poke site with your money, how would you have felt if they did not stop them and at least check out if this was OK. It may not be what you want but they are also trying to protect people from being ripped off or if they have an issue.

 

[member401988]

I just downloaded stars today. I made 3 deposits to get the new player bonus. Immediately after my third deposit my account was restricted for a "random security check". So not only can I not play but I also can't withdraw any money. From what I've read they can take weeks or even months to unrestrict your account. Apparently some people have been requested address and identity verification. First off they ask to verify your identity when you sign up; second they don't tell you when they ask for your address that it needs to be an official address so that could definitely cause problems. I think the site is a huge scam honestly. In Blackjack it seems you will lose more hands in a row the higher you bet. If you're just playing poker maybe it's ok as long as you don't get hit with a "random security check" and get locked out of your account. They even use the same exact style of blackjack tables FanDual uses which is even worse when it comes to the level of taking your money. THESE ARE NOT REAL CASINOS! I don't think they have nearly the same regulations real casinos have so they can take more of your money faster. STAY AWAY!

it's not so bad with pokerstars just wait 2 days and kindly explain your problem to them and believe me everything will be solved

 

[member401988]

I cant beat the comment of Tammy and Fundiver but would like to add some extra thought.

What if someone got your credit card number or banking details. If someone did and started to make multiple deposit to a poke site with your money, how would you have felt if they did not stop them and at least check out if this was OK. It may not be what you want but they are also trying to protect people from being ripped off or if they have an issue.

there is no problem to make several deposits in one day, but the account must be at least 1 year old

 

[Tammy]

there is no problem to make several deposits in one day, but the account must be at least 1 year old

This is also a US regulated version of PokerStars. So there may be stricter rules. @Banofshrecasino - you made your post but never returned. What happened?

 

[thetick33]

havent deposited or withdrawn yet ill add here if ever do....shouldnt be that tough was never tough with other pokerstars...

 

[fundiver199]

@Banofshrecasino - you made your post but never returned. What happened?

Somehow I have a sense, we will never know. Its not the first time, someone signed up to the forum and posted some sort of variation of "uh-buh XX site did this and that to me for no reason, its a huge scam". But often some parts of the story are left out, which are not so favourable for the poster

 

[Tammy]

Somehow I have a sense, we will never know. Its not the first time, someone signed up to the forum and posted some sort of variation of "uh-buh XX site did this and that to me for no reason, its a huge scam". But often some parts of the story are left out, which are not so favourable for the poster

Exactly. It's is very, very rare that the posting party did not have some hand in the reason why their account was suspended/disabled/etc.

 

[fundiver199]

Exactly. It's is very, very rare that the posting party did not have some hand in the reason why their account was suspended/disabled/etc.

In general poker sites dont ban players or freeze their accounts for no reason. It would not make sense for them to do so, because they make no money, if people dont play. Sometimes we might disagree with the actions taken by a certain site. Like when GG Poker stole the winnings of a german pro for having signed up to a new skin, even though they had told him not to, when they closed his first account for alledged "bum hunting".

But its not like, he had no hand at all in, what happened to him. As a professional player he should have be fully capable to check, if a certain site was part of the GG Poker network, before he signed up there and deposited 10.000`s of dollars. So he was either very reckless and negligent, or he deliberate took a chance and ended up getting screwed by GG Poker as a result.