четверг, 28 марта 2013 г.

InfoSec Institute Resources - Legal Aspects of Online Gambling

According to a study based on an online survey completed by 10,838 online casino and poker players from 96 countries, responsible gambling features were generally viewed positively, particularly by casino game players, those who chased losses, and younger adults (Gainsbury, Parke, Suhonen, 2013). However, over one-third of participants stated that they had a dispute with an online gambling operator. Moreover, the participants in the study reported high levels of mistrust and concerns regarding online gambling as well as confusion regarding the appropriate regulation of Internet gambling.


Taking into account the fact that cases of fraudulent casinos have been well documented, such mistrust is not surprising. The most commonly used casino frauds are refusal to pay withdrawals or cheating software with rigged payouts. Fraudulent casinos are also called "rogue casinos."


Ladbrokes bonus poker night fundraiser flyer the

These are three ways to find out whether or not an online casino is legitimate. The first way is to ensure that the website of the online casino is audited by a third party organization like eCommerce and Online Gaming Regulation and Assurance (http://www.ecogra.org) or Technical Systems Testing (http://www.tstglobal.com/). An online casino bearing one of the seals of these two organizations should be regarded as a trustworthy casino.


The second way is to check the legitimacy of the online casino owner. This can be done by conducting an Internet search about the said owner and the provider of the software they use. Because most online casinos are part of a group, it should be relatively easy to find some information about the owner. In relation to the software provider, it should be noted that the most popular software providers include Microgaming, Playtech, Rival Gaming, Vegas Technology and Wagerlogic.


If the online casino uses one of these technologies, it is most probably a safe online casino.


The third way is to check whether the content published by the online casino is already published somewhere. The check is based on the fact that many fake online casinos share their content. The check can be performed by copying a paragraph from the website of the online casino and pasting it into a search engine.


5. Money-laundering through online gambling


Online gambling can be exploited for money laundering. In most jurisdictions, money laundering is a criminal offence. It is defined by Interpol as "any act or attempted act to conceal or disguise the identity of illegally obtained proceeds so that they appear to have originated from legitimate sources (See http://www.interpol.int/Crime-areas/Financial-crime/Money-laundering)."


A common way to use online gambling for money laundering is to create a gambling account under a fake identity and place a certain amount of money in the account. Next, the money launderer places equal bets on the "red" and "black" fields of the roulette table as well as small bet on the "zero" field. This allows him to win almost the same amount of money as the amount of the bets.


Then, the money launderer withdraws the winnings from the account and requests a document showing that the money is legitimate winnings.


Countries and international organizations have imposed obligations on online casinos aiming to prevent money laundering practices. For example, Article 14(2) of the UK Money Laundering Regulations oblige remote online casinos to verify the identities of their customers by taking adequate measures to compensate for the higher risk caused by the non-face-to-face transactions involved in online gambling. These measures may include: (1) ensuring that the customer's identity is established by additional documents, data or information; (2) supplementary measures to verify or certify the documents supplied, or requiring confirmatory certification by a credit or financial institution which is subject to the money laundering directive; (3) ensuring that the first payment is carried out through an account opened in the customer's name with a credit institution.


It should be noted that it is technologically easier to monitor online gambling activities in online casinos than gambling activities in physical casinos. In this regard, the Interactive Gaming Council, a non-profit organization that serves as a collective voice for the interactive gaming industry, noted that: "Online gaming can be one of the most watched and monitored forms of e-commerce - by licensing jurisdictions, financial institutions and various others - not to mention that, unlike land-based gaming, cash is not used in transactions."


6. Conclusion


This article has shown that online gambling is a global issue affecting virtually all countries. It examined four legal aspects of online gambling.


First, the article discussed the legality of online gambling activities. In this context, it was shown that some countries try to profit from online gambling by imposing little to no requirements for conducting online gambling activities. Other countries either strictly regulate or prohibit online gambling activities for moral and social policy reasons.


Second, the article analyzed the protection of minors against online gambling. In this regard, it was stated that, because online gambling can have a serious impact on the development of minors, many countries have imposed obligations on online casinos with the aim of protecting minors.


Third, the article examined the protection of consumers. In this regard, it was explained how fraudulent casinos may steal money from consumers. In order to avoid gambling in a fraudulent casino, players need to either ensure that the website of the online casino is audited by a third party organization, check the legitimacy of the owner of the online casino, or check whether or not the content published by the online casino is already published somewhere else.


Fourth, the article discussed the use of online gambling for money laundering. In this connection, it was pointed out that, while there is a potential for the use of online gambling for money laundering, this risk could be addressed by imposing obligations on the online casinos to establish their customers' identities online.


References


David Garson, G., 'Public Information Technology and E-Governance: Managing the Virtual State', Jones & Bartlett Learning, 2006.


Derevensky, J., Shek, D., Merrick, J., 'Youth Gambling: The Hidden Addiction', Walter de Gruyter, 2011.


Gainsbury, S., Parke, J., Suhonen, N., 'Consumer attitudes towards Internet gambling: Perceptions of responsible gambling policies, consumer protection, and regulation of online gambling sites', Computers in Human Behaviour 29(1), January 2013, pp. 235-245.


Gainsbury, S., 'Internet Gambling: Current Research Findings and Implications', Springer, 2012.


'Gambling', written submission from Alderney Gambling Control Commission (GA 05), UK Parliament, Session 2010-12. Available on http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201213/cmselect/cmcumeds/writev/1554/m05.htm .


Hornle, J., Zammit, B., 'Cross-boder Online Gambling Law and Policy', Edward Elgar Publishing, 2010.


'IGC Urges Australia to Regulate', a press release published by the Interactive Gaming Council. Available on http://w3.igcouncil.org/content/view/115/99/ .


'Internet Gambling: An Overview of the Issues', U. S. Government Accountability Office, Cosimo, Inc., 2010.


'Literature review of children and young people's gambling', a research paper commissioned by the UK's Gambling Commissioned and conducted by Professor Gill Valentine, September 2008. Available on http://www.gamblingcommission.gov.uk/pdf/literature%20review%20of%20children%20and%20young%20peoples%20gambling%20-%20sept%202008.pdf


'Money Laundering', The Official Website of Interpol (last checked on 3 March 2013).


Plunkett, J., 'Plunkett's Entertainment and Media Industry Almanac 2009 (E-Book): Entertainment and Media Industry Market Research, Statistics, Trends and Leading Companies', Plunkett Research 2009.


Spapens, A., Spapens, T., Littler, A., Fijnaut, C., 'Crime, Addiction and the Regulation of Gambling', Brill, 2008.


The UK Money Laundering Regulations 2007. Available on http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2007/2157/contents/made .


Thompson v. Mastercard International et al. 01-30389. (5th Cir. 2002).

Ladbrokes bonus poker night fundraiser flyer the

Комментариев нет:

Отправить комментарий