Online Gambling and Age Verification: Protecting Minors

Age verification is not a new thing. We see it when it comes to alcohol or tobacco consumption, films, and sensitive online content. Gambling is no exception to this rule. When you want to sign up for a casino, one of the first things you’ll need to do is verify that you’re over the legal age limit for playing. However, performing age verification in a digital space isn’t always easy.

In this article, you’ll find out about the challenges and how to overcome them. We’ll also discuss the responsibility online casinos and parents have to keep children away from gambling.

Why is Age Verification Important?

Being online is how children socialise with friends, entertain themselves, and even do schoolwork these days. But, we all know that the internet isn’t 100% kid-friendly. Online gambling, for example, can have a huge impact and leave severe long-lasting consequences. 

Casinos have a social responsibility to ensure that their environment remains adult-only. Not only does this protect kids and lead to a more positive perception of gambling, but it also eliminates potential financial and legal damages.

The Challenges of Age Verification

Privacy

The main issue with age verification is that it requires a lot of personal information from the player. People are, naturally, wary of disclosing sensitive data on the internet, especially when we are in the age of data mining, collection, and sales. 

Even if the casino takes all the necessary precautions and has the best intentions, data leaks and malicious outside attacks aren’t unheard of. This can make people feel vulnerable and sow distrust in the operator.

However, there are things that online casinos can do to mitigate this:

• Site security. Casinos need to invest more resources into site security, with SSL encryption being the first item on this to-do list.

• Partnering with respectable providers. Operators need to ensure that the providers they partner with hold a sense for the same level of social responsibility. This is especially important if the casino is planning on running promotions that require people to interact with the game provider’s products and site more closely.

• Having trustworthy payment options. This is another area filled with sensitive information. Making sure you only offer highly secure payment methods can go a long way in helping players feel safe and building trust. E-wallets are a great option and cryptocurrency might even be a better one. Both of these methods are more transparent and secure.

Differences in National Laws

Online casinos are often international, meaning that they need to respect the laws for age verification procedures and regulations. Extensive research is required to ensure the casino adheres to all applicable laws and regulations.

This can cost a lot of money, time, and effort, but it’s the only way to ensure everything is done properly. If a casino has an international licence, that can make things easier for them as the requirements they need to fulfil are much clearer.

Another issue is that players might not even be aware of all the things they legally have to do in order to gamble. This can lead to misplaced frustration against the casino and feeling like the operator is unnecessarily complicating things. One way to bridge this gap in communication is to have a dedicated page to protecting minors. This is your place to explain to the players what your age verification procedures are and why they are in place.

Time-sensitivity

People don’t have a lot of patience and will give up on signing up as soon as they see it takes longer than a couple of minutes. So if you require complicated age verification right off the bat, it’s likely you won’t get a lot of customers quickly.

That’s why you’ll see a lot of casinos offering one-click registration, signing up with your social media account, or just typing in your email/phone number. We can also assume that people will have the same issue with a lengthy verification process regardless of when they need to do it. Doesn’t this lead to more opportunity for kids to gamble without being detected?

Not if you’re smart about how you impose age verification checks. That’s why a lot of casinos won’t let you deposit or withdraw without completing your profile and verifying your ID. Another common incentive is offered through bonuses.

For example, a casino might offer a fantastic free spins bonus. But, the term for claiming it is to have a verified profile. That means that a player needs to go through the entire process, but that they will be rewarded for their effort and time. It’s a much more painless way to complete the necessary verification and ensure no minors are gambling.

AML & KYC Procedures

AML (Anti Money Laundering) and KYC (Know Your Customer) are procedures that casinos are required to have in place by almost any gambling licence. AML is an umbrella term that includes all regulation process related to financial crime, laundering, and fraud. KYC, on the other hand, is used specifically for risk assessment and identification process. It’s actually a part of AML measures.

While KYC procedures can depend on a particular country’s and licence’s regulations, the process generally requires:

• A form of ID (passport, country ID, driver’s licence)
• Statement from bank/other payment method (full name and address much be visible)
• Recent utility bill (with name and address also visible)

Once the verification is complete and the casino is sure the customer is who they claim to be, does that mean the case is closed? Not necessarily, since minors often have access to their parents’ computers or mobile phones. To ensure there’s no illegal activity, casinos are required to periodically re-do checks and always monitor the players’ activity. As soon as there’s suspicious activity, the account is flagged and the issue is addressed.

Ways to Protect Minors

Aside from KYC and other age verification procedures, there are some things both casinos and parents can do to protect children.

Awareness and Education

As we already mentioned, having a page dedicated to responsible gambling is imperative for every casino. The good news is that gambling licences already require this. But, raising awareness and educating people doesn’t stop here.

Parents shouldn’t be afraid of having open discussions with their children and explaining how gambling works. This is especially important when children start asking questions about gambling themselves. The first instinct many parents have is to avoid the conversation or simply tell their kids gambling is something for adults only.

But, children are curious creatures and all they will conclude from that curt conversation is that they can’t come to their parents for valid information. So, they’ll likely start asking their peers or search for answers on the internet. This can lead to a lot of misinformation and put kids in unnecessary danger.

A better approach would be finding an age-appropriate way to explain what gambling is. For example, if you have a teenager that’s interested in gambling, you could warn them of the immediate consequences. One such consequence is not having enough spending money for the things they enjoy.

Monitoring Online Activity

Monitoring online activity is a tricky topic, as a lot of people believe that children are entitled to privacy on the internet. While this is true to an extent, there is nothing wrong in making sure your child is safe. There are a lot of parental controls available today, making it easy to block content by keywords. 

So, when your child is using the internet, they will be less likely to encounter gambling ads and casinos. Of course, it’s also a good idea to periodically check what kind of content they are consuming and have regular conversations about its dangers about them.

Setting an Example

One of the best things you can do as a parent is to lead by example. Children like to copy us because they think we have all the answers and want to be adults as well. So, show them how a responsible adult behaves.

If you enjoy gambling, make sure that you are using responsible gambling tools to limit your activity. Have a set budget and don’t spend more than you can afford to lose. As well as that, avoid gambling in front of your child often. By watching you, they are more likely to form a healthy attitude towards gambling. If they end up sharing your hobby when they grow up, they will be less likely to develop compulsive gambling habits.

Conclusion

It’s clear that protecting minors from gambling is important and possible. For the best results, both casinos and parents need to be aware of the effects gambling can have on children. By taking appropriate measures like in-depth KYC procedures, monitoring online activity, and periodically performing verification checks, we can ensure that gambling spaces stay child-free.