Geolocation is a major factor included in the online poker regulations in the state of New Jersey. Geolocation technology is used to determine if a player is located within the borders of the state and if not, the player is to be locked out from taking part in gaming. For PokerStarsNJ, the geolocation software failed to detect the location of players accessing the site which has now led to a $25,000 fine from the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement.
Earlier this week, the DGE published a decision from January 20th which revealed that a software flaw led to the New Jersey PokerStars site being fined the $25k. Individuals located outside of the state were able to gamble at PokerStarsNJ.com which is against the intrastate gambling rules of the state.
An investigation by the DGE found that a limited number of players were allowed to place wagers at PokerStars while being located outside of the borders of the state. The gambling took place for a short period of time before a geolocation check shut down game play. Since that time, PokerStars has launched an update that fixed the issue.