Online gambling allows people to play games or place bets from the comfort of their own homes. These activities are regulated by governments and offer a range of benefits to consumers, including security and taxation.
However, there are some concerns about online gambling. This article will discuss some of the most common.
Legality
Online gambling has become a booming industry, and it’s no surprise that federal laws struggle to keep up. Traditionally, gamblers have sought to avoid laws that prohibit, restrict or aggressively tax gambling by moving the activity just outside of jurisdictional control. This strategy has resulted in many unregulated gambling establishments near state borders and even on ships that cruise beyond territorial waters. Now, Internet gambling offers a similar end run by enabling the operation of unlicensed, offshore betting sites that accept American customers.
The UIGEA targets the finances of these sites by prohibiting financial institutions from processing transactions to and from them. In addition, the federal Wire Act criminalizes certain activities that help bettors place wagers across state lines.
The legalization of online casinos and poker in the US has been a slow process. However, New Jersey became the first US state to launch a legal site in 2013, and other states have followed suit.
Convenience
Online gambling enables consumers to gamble without leaving their homes, and this may lead to addiction and other problems. In addition, online casinos use flashing bold graphics to signal wins, which can trigger an emotional reaction in players. This can also cause a person to continue gambling even after they have won money.
Unlike casino gambling, online gambling is done in private and often at night, making it easier to conceal the activity from significant others. It is also possible to place large wagers quickly, and a high speed Internet connection allows for quick feedback on outcomes.
Like traditional brick-and-mortar casinos, online gambling sites are also targeted by fraudsters using standard phishing and social engineering techniques to fund fraudulent accounts. Another area of concern is that online gambling sites are a popular place for money launderers to operate. This is especially true for cryptocurrencies, which are often used by criminals to hide their identity. This is a problem that the gambling industry needs to address.
Safety
Many online gambling sites accept credit cards, making it easy for gamblers to lose track of their spending. Fraudsters can also use stolen credit cards to file chargebacks, resulting in losses for both the merchant and the player. Additionally, gambling losses can hurt a player’s credit score.
Online problem gamblers tend to be multi-modal gamblers who frequently use multiple Internet modes of gambling. Thus, analyses that do not distinguish the gambling form(s) that cause problems may confound results.
To overcome this issue, this study analyzed individuals who reported problems attributed to specific forms of online gambling (EGMs, sports betting and race betting) rather than across all forms of online gambling. This allows the identification of risk factors that are specific to each online gambling form, and therefore may lead to more effective interventions. This research has been conducted in accordance with the recommendations of the National Statement on Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans. It was reviewed and approved by the Southern Cross University Human Research Ethics Committee.
Addiction
Online gambling is a highly addictive form of gambling. Users are exposed to many factors that influence their behavior and may be at higher risk of developing a gambling disorder. This includes the convenience of accessing online gambling sites, the lack of physical barriers to playing and the social identity formed by engaging in a virtual community of gamblers. This can lead to a false sense of normality and encourage harmful behaviors (Kaakinen et al. 2020).
However, there are several limitations to current research on the relationship between Internet gambling and problem gambling. The cross-sectional design of most studies limits the ability to determine causal directions, while self-report measures are prone to bias and can be inaccurate. Furthermore, most studies have analyzed the relationship between problem gambling and a single mode of online gambling, whereas different forms of online gambling are characterized by different features.