The Hidden Dangers of Online Gambling
Before online casinos existed, gambling online meant arranging a visit to a land-based casino.
Depending on where you lived, the trip could be long and might even require an overnight stay. In 1994, the first online casino appeared, eventually paving the way for thousands more.
Online casinos are now easy to find, with a wide range of real-money games available at home or on the go from a mobile device. If you have an internet-connected device that can browse the World Wide Web or run casino apps, online gambling is within reach.
That convenience has drawbacks. Online gambling comes with risks worth understanding, and this article looks at some of the less obvious dangers of playing on these sites.
The goal is to explain the risks by pointing out less obvious aspects of online gambling compared with land-based play, not simply to condemn it.
Online Casinos and Land-Based Casinos
Land-based casinos can be more expensive because their minimum bets are often higher, and travel and a possible hotel stay add to the cost. Online casinos, by contrast, are available 24 hours a day, 365 days a week, usually offer lower stakes, and provide far more games than a physical venue.
Whether you want to play blackjack, try baccarat, roulette, online slots, craps, poker, or bet on your favorite sport, you may find it on a website. Playing online is also generally more convenient than traveling to a land-based casino.
At first glance, online casinos may seem to offer a better deal than physical casinos. But alongside the benefits of online play are several less obvious drawbacks.
- Loneliness
- Overspending
- Scams
- Lack of suitable tools
- Rigged games/results tampering
Online Casino Gambling Can Feel Lonely
Online casinos can be entertaining and may fill time when boredom has you looking for a hobby. A range of table games and variations can keep you occupied. For instance, you might spend hours learning Blackjack’s basic strategy and trying it in different formats, including 4 to 8-deck games or hands that allow surrender or splitting.
Slot players can also choose from thousands of themes, titles, and features, offering potentially hours of entertainment. Loyalty bonuses, casino challenges, and multiple tournaments can make play even more absorbing.
That abundance of entertainment also carries risks. Online casino games can take up a substantial amount of your time. While playing, you may have less time for friends and family, and you might start cancelling sports events or social plans to keep playing your favorite slots. If you feel compelled to bet a little more just to meet a bonus wagering requirement, you may be developing a gambling problem.
You might argue that Live Casino offers social contact because its chat features let you talk to a dealer or croupier. But that is no substitute for the social interaction you need. Online play could weaken your connections with friends, family, or even your spouse.
Maintaining real-world contact with friends and family matters. Consider setting a firm time limit for gambling online at your casino.
- Set a firm limit on how long you can play
- Take a break from gambling if you start cancelling sports or social plans
- Make time for family, friends, and socializing instead of always playing casino games
- Do not treat live dealer games as a substitute for socializing in person
Online Casinos Can Encourage Overspending
The risk of overspending at an online casino is serious, largely because deposits are so easy to make. In that respect, online casinos offer the kind of convenience found on Amazon or eBay: fast payment options for customers. In today’s fast-paced eCommerce environment, people expect to pay for goods almost instantly.
With so many quick payment methods available, adding funds to a casino account can take just seconds and a few clicks or taps. You may not even need to leave the game, as some sites offer in-game deposits or top-ups. Overspending is especially easy when you are chasing losses and can deposit immediately.
If you are raising your bets to recover a loss, adding more money than you intended, or wagering beyond what you can afford, step away. If overspending or chasing losses continues, consider these tools that may help you stop:
- Use your casino’s reality-check tools to set time limits
- Consider the casino’s self-exclusion feature to take a cooling-off break
- Set table limits to prevent yourself from raising stakes while chasing losses
- Set maximum deposit limits for the day, week, or month
How to Avoid Falling for a Scam
The article describes most online casinos as fair and licensed by trusted authorities, but a licence alone does not guarantee safety. It presents government or EU-based licensing as a safeguard because regulators are expected to monitor operators. Those processes may still have limitations, and authorization in one jurisdiction does not establish authorization elsewhere.
A casino may look legitimate while holding a licence from a remote island jurisdiction. It may also use games from Microgaming, Evolution Gaming, and NetEnt, creating an impression of trustworthiness. Those brands do not necessarily protect you: some operators use well-known developers but find ways to avoid paying large wins.
Such casinos may operate beyond the reach of laws or jurisdictions where legal action is straightforward. They could ignore your messages, close your account, or come up with a reason to withhold payment.
Research an operator before depositing. Check whether it is licensed where you live or by a body such as the MGA, which covers multiple jurisdictions. Read casino reviews, check ratings and comments from players who have used the casino, and browse social media and forums. Careful research may uncover warning signs of a scam, but cannot guarantee a particular outcome.
- Research the casino’s licensing body and consider whether it is trustworthy
- Favor casinos licensed by UKGC, MGA, or authorities operating under EU laws
- Read casino reviews to see what players say about the operator
Sometimes the Problem Is Not the Player
One challenge in assessing an online casino is finding out what tools it offers to help you gamble responsibly. This is especially important for newcomers who may not yet understand the risks of overindulgence. A responsible casino should offer measures intended to limit overspending and excessive play, and help people avoid debt or gambling addiction.
Look for FAQs, help pages, game RTP information, how-to-play materials, strategy guides, and links to organizations offering help and information about problem gambling.
Above all, the casino should provide tools that allow you to:
- Set a maximum deposit limit for the day, week, or month
- Set a maximum amount for a single wager by using table limits
- Self-exclude for a cooling-off period or longer
- Restrict access to specific games
- Use a reality check to track playing time and the amounts wagered or lost
The overspending section already discussed these features as ways to reduce the risk of debt and chasing losses. Before playing, it is important to check that the casino actually offers them.
Rigged Games and Tampered Results at Untrustworthy Casinos
Very few online casinos could get away with rigging games at that time. The article notes that even operators with poor licensing often use platforms connected to several software providers, which are intended to keep random number generators (RNGs) within a predefined return to player (RTP) and prevent operator tampering.
Nevertheless, some casinos operate with questionable licences that allow them to use proprietary RNGs. They may display a certificate claiming that a reputable company checked the RNGs. That check may have taken place, but the key questions are when it happened and how often testing is repeated. The review raises the possibility that testing took place when the casino opened and never happened again.
Badges and seals can create a false sense of security while game results are manipulated. On closer inspection, an RNG certificate may be months or years old, or undated. The operator may also have a questionable licence that makes this kind of deception easier.
Here are 5 practical tips for avoiding rigged online casino games:
- Choose casinos licensed by the EU or trusted local government authorities
- Check whether the casino provides eCOGRA quarterly reporting
- See if IBAS is available as a third-party channel for casino disputes
- Look for current certificates from iTech Labs, Testlabs, GLI, and TST
- Read casino reviews, including those published here on Al Buraq Regina
