Q&A Guide on Online Casino Licensing

This is not your text book extract on online gaming regulations nor is it a circular from the government officials. This here, is the millennial’s no nonsense, answer-me-right-away guide to the most crucial, often overlooked criterion of Online Casinos; Licensing.

Summary

1. What does it mean to be licensed?

2. How do I know if the sites are regulated?
3. Why should sites be licensed?
4. Who are the Regulatory bodies?
5. How do I decide on a trustworthy gaming site?
6. End of Q&A

What does it mean to be licensed?

The Gambling industry has become one of the more successful commercial activities online. The bigger the industry gets, the higher probability of abuse. In order to keep the check and balance in the ever growing industry, the more reliable casino operators have made their pacts with authorised organisations to make sure their activities are compliant. That saying, these licensed guys constantly go through a pesky list of responsible gaming checks, compliance auditing and other relevant tests to serve us legit entertainment in the safest environment.

How do I know if the sites are regulated?

Take a scroll down the site and the credentials are usually placed at the site’s footer, in micro font.

Better still, learn more about the site in their ‘About us’ section. Integrity and reliability are hard to measure but it shows when the gaming sites take social responsibility seriously. Sites like EmuCasino has an entire page dedicated for Responsible Gaming.

Why should sites be licensed?

If you are living in Utopia, where transactions go on good faith and fraud is unheard of, you can generously share your personal information and account details to just anybody. Truth is, we are far from that perfect situation, so remove the rose tinted glasses and take heed of a casino’s legitimacy.

Gambling albeit it’s fun nature can take an ugly turn with addiction and people losing money to the point it becomes a problem. So, gaming platforms should not be only be making profit, but be socially responsible. This can be done by fulfilling the stringent conditions set by the licensing bodies and observing the responsible gaming principles.

Also, online casinos process personal and financial data on a day-to-day basis that it is only absurd to not regulate these sites. The amount of data if not governed may be a cause for concern and ultimately lead to infringement of personal data protection laws.

All in all, licensing requirement is not a choice, it’s an obligation. So, click that x button on the unregulated sites and read up some casino reviews for a list of licensed sites.

Who are the Regulatory bodies?

Now, we look at the gatekeepers of the casino industry; the licensing bodies and gaming regulators:

• Malta Gaming Authority manages the gaming activities in Malta and one of the earliest in the field to take a step forward to set standards to the Gaming industry. This covers but not limits to; protecting player’s rights, fair and transparent gaming experience as well as ensuring the gaming provider’s integrity.  Any site licensed under MGA usually provides the license details on its site. In any case, there is absolutely no harm in being extra vigilant, so double check that information in the MGA licensee register.

• Curacao Gaming Control is another established regulatory body providing supervisory and compliance services since the 90’s. Many operators have opted for a Curacao Licenses as they are seemingly convenient with a reasonable tax. However, just to be on the safe side, do some due diligence to verify the Curacao licensed sites.

• Alderney Gambling Control Commission issues license to gaming providers based in Alderney/Guernsey. The AGCC has two major responsibilities; one is to provide license subject to a set of measures and the next, to ensure compliance. This is why the Commission takes a hands on approach dealing with players’ complaints by providing clear cut enforcement.

• United Kingdom Gambling Commission, is one of the pioneers in addressing the issues on non-regulation in the gambling industry. It acts under the powers given by The Gambling Act 2005 and constantly updates their regulatory measures to keep up with the evolving iGaming scene. UKGC also provides a public registry, where you can easily verify the details of a gaming site.

There are more to list but all these authorities perform more or less the same hawk-eyed roles. Generally, online casinos consider the jurisdiction, the cost of license, tax and reputation before deciding on the license from any of these regulatory boards.

How do I decide on a trustworthy gaming site?

If it wasn’t made clear through the series of answers above, there is no single way to judge the reliability of a gaming site. So, here is a list of things you look out for:

• Terms and condition. Yes, as daunting as it can be, read the long-winded but binding text.
• License and certification. Sites can claim whatever they want to be but check their jurisdiction and confirm the details.
• Payment options. Most sites use the standard and secure payment options. Be wary of sites steering away from the normalcy.
• Reviews. Last but not the least, there are tons of reviews on casino sites to help you make the right decisions.

End of Q&A

This article is written to cater for the list of questions we have heard a number of times in our circle of newbies and veteran casino players but it is not the be-all and end-all guide.