With online casino gaming spreading like wildfire in the United States, many people have been exposed for the first time to casino games and even sports betting online.
But with so many new customers come added responsibility for the industry to uphold its regulations.
Earlier this month, Conscious Gaming, a non-profit company, launched Bettor Safe, a national campaign to promote responsible gambling. This campaign aims to educate iGaming players on the risks of betting.
According to the Bettor Safe website, the campaign “is committed to educating consumers about the risks associated with betting on illegal websites. The campaign empowers individuals to identify unregulated sites and helps them to understand the benefits of legal and regulated online gaming options if they choose to wager.”
With the online gaming industry expanding and so many new sites opening up, it can be difficult for beginners to know the difference between a legal and illegal site.
The risks of betting on an illegal site, according to Bettor Safe, are “Consumers betting on illegal sites have no legal protection safeguarding their wager, their identity and their financial information. By entering personal details and payment information on an illegal site, you are handing this information to an unregulated entity that is not subject to government oversight or legal recourse. This means that there is no guarantee that funds deposited into account are protected. It also means that there is no way of knowing whether the game you are playing has fair odds, or whether the odds have been stacked against you. In addition, by choosing to support unregulated operators, your wagers may be supporting illegal activity including money laundering.”
Our site has reviewed the top online casinos in New Jersey.
The Bettor Safe campaign is focusing on the states of New Jersey and Pennsylvania. The campaign aims to providing information, including a list of sites that gambling is regulated. Bettor Safe has produced a video specific to New Jersey, available here.
This is not Conscious Gaming’s first campaign: In September, the non-profit introduced PlayPause, a sports betting integrity tool that aims to help the online gaming industry manage better.
Conscious Gaming was created by GeoComply, a geolocation compliance company used by online casino operators. These companies ensure that players are within legal geographic boundaries to place a wager. New Jersey is a state that uses GeoComply.