As the popularity of online casino platforms increase, so too has the number of scammers. Able to disguise themselves as professional websites, it’s becoming increasingly hard to separate the legitimate from the fraudulent. This article provides tips for avoiding online casino scams.
Read the Terms and Conditions
Although reading through the terms and conditions can be tiresome, it’s one of the best ways of identifying whether it’s a legitimate casino. Common indicators of scams to look out for are when payouts are distributed months later, overly-generous bonuses and when buying tokens, there’s no guarantee you’ll be paid back with the exact exchange rate. So, be sure to analyze the withdrawal, wagering and bonus policies.
Regarding emails, be wary when they’re headlined by massive bonuses and excessive spins, like “Grab 350 Free Spins and Double Your Next Deposit.” Before clicking the sign-up link, search the site and read the reviews. And if you’re involved in online gambling groups, send a screenshot of the website or email members in your group to hear what they say.
Although there are a lot of scammers, it’s important to remember there are also many legitimate sites enjoyed by millions of people worldwide. Other than scanning the terms and conditions, great tips for finding them are asking friends who play online casino games regularly, reading the reviews of sites, checking what sites professional gamblers use and joining online communities on Discord, Reddit or Twitter.
Is There a Law That Protects Online Gamblers?
Regarding jurisdiction in protecting online gamblers, there’s the Unlawful Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006. Passed by Congress, it focuses on the financial transactions associated with gambling online. Interestingly, rather than focusing on users, the act ensures financial institutions, including banks, payment processors and casinos, are held accountable for blocking and identifying unlawful payments, failing which they risk massive fines and potential bans.
The act states that financial institutions and casinos are prohibited from “knowingly accepting payments in connection with the participation of another person in a bet or wager that involves the use of the Internet and that is unlawful under any federal or state law.”
Your policies may differ for those gambling outside of America, as the Unlawful Gambling Act of 2006 only applies to the USA. So, be sure to research the gambling laws in your region.
Famous Con Artists
From pyramid schemes to fraudulent investments, scams are as old as humankind. Unfortunately, as soon industries begin to boom, like online gambling and property, they attract many distasteful characters looking to take advantage of a rising industry.
Some of the most famous con artists include Charles Ponzi’s deceitful $15 million postal coupon scheme, William Thompson asking strangers whether they had enough confidence to lend him their watch for the day and the fraudulent checks of Frank Abagnale, who also pretended to be a pilot and who inspired the film Catch Me If You Can starring Tom Hanks and Leonardo DiCaprio.
Regarding con artists in casinos, players have been caught counting cards and working as duos to swing the odds in their favor. If you’ve watched The Hangover, you may remember the Las Vegas casino scene where they combine both approaches.
The Most Common Online Casino Scams
When it comes to being scammed, the implications can be detrimental. Identity and credit card theft are common forms of scams. Sadly, both inflict extreme harm on their victims. For example, they can open new credit accounts, drain old ones and make unauthorized purchases. Not only can this severely impact your mental state, but it can also mean long, complex and expensive legal processes.
As for identifying scams, the offer of overly-generous bonuses is a big tell. Although bonuses and rewards are the perks of gambling online, casinos are cautious with their offerings. Remember, most popular casinos host millions of users, meaning large sign-up bonuses and casino online betting rewards impact their profits.
Contacting customer support is another clear indicator of whether a casino is legitimate. So, before signing up, ask a few simple questions. If they respond quickly in a professional, well-written style, it’s a good sign that they’re the real deal because fraudulent websites often take hours or even days to respond.
Another factor to be mindful of is that scammers often target the most popular casino table games, including poker and roulette, as well as online slots and bingo. So, be particularly careful and do your research. If it looks too good to be true, it usually is.
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