Las Vegas is America's Playground . . .And its Security Lab: How the Technology Developed to Protect Casinos Earnings is Also Helping to Protect Against Terrorism and Why We Should Be Concerned

Abstract

Las Vegas, Nevada, has long been known as “America’s playground” due in large part to the casino and gaming business that thrives within this desert city. Along with the glitz, glamor, and sparkling lights of the casinos come the hopes of hitting the jackpot — whether through the luck of an honest wager or from cheating the house. Because of the large amount of money handled by Las Vegas casinos, casinos are continually seeking ways to protect and increase their profits through various security measures — which has made Las Vegas a technology innovator. This paper discusses some of the technology used in casinos to protect their investment and how casinos gather and share information, not only among themselves; but, with the federal government. Because of the events on September 11, 2001, the federal government’s interest in Las Vegas technology was piqued by the development of a system that could link together “non-obvious” and seemingly random information. This paper asserts that this technology combined with the “mosaic effect” allows the federal government an even greater ability to know specific details about the lives of its citizens. While acknowledging this technology exists, this paper provides recommendations that citizen groups should urge government officials to adopt regarding the government’s use of this technology.