ACMA blocks 50 illegal gambling websites, issues 15 formal warnings in Q2

The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) has released its latest Action on Interactive Gambling report, covering the period from April to June 2024. During the second quarter, ACMA looked into 514 inquiries and complaints, completed 14 investigations into 15 gambling sites, found 17 breaches of the Interactive Gambling Act 2001 (IGA), issued 15 formal warnings, and blocked 50 websites and 359 URLs.

Of the complaints received, 463 (90%) were valid and required investigations under the IGA. Of such investigations, 17 were found to violate the Interactive Gambling Act, with 12 operators found to be providing a prohibited interactive gambling service to Australian customers. 

This includes four complaints for providing an unlicensed regulated interactive gambling service to Australian customers and one for advertising a prohibited and/or unlicensed regulated interactive gambling service in Australia. 

Of the 15 formal warnings served, four were recent cases, in which Dama N.V. and Strukin Ltd for Wanted Win; Libergos Ltd and Hollycorn for Richard Casino, were both issued formal warnings for providing services to illegal gambling sites. 

The authority also said that it blocked 50 websites during the period, including names such as Richard Casino, Wanted Win, Jogi Casino, Dundee Slots, Lucky Hunter, Lucky Wins, Lukki Casino, Spin Fever, Clubhouse Casino, and Winport Casino.

“The majority are casino-style services offering games like blackjack, roulette, poker, and slots. A number of the sites also provided wagering services without an Australian license. It is an offense to provide or advertise these types of services to customers in Australia,” ACMA said in its report about website blocking.  

Aside from combating illegal gambling sites, ACMA has also held consumer awareness campaigns, which include educating Australian citizens about the credit card ban by Responsible Wagering Australia (RWA).

“We started a consumer awareness campaign on 22 May 2024 alerting consumers to the ban on using credit cards and digital currency for deposits to licensed wagering operators. This came into effect on 11 June 2024. The campaign continued through to 30 June 2024 and provided links to information about the ban,” ACMA stated in its report. 

The authority also held a consumer awareness campaign that alerted consumers to the risks of using illegal offshore gambling sites, which commenced in February 2024 and continued until the end of June.