Recently, the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) has revealed that it is preparing to request from the local Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to suspend Australian residents’ access to a further 11 offshore gambling websites that were found to be illegal. The regulatory body has also urged local users to make sure they withdraw any money they might have in their accounts as soon as possible.
The decision of the ACMA came after the regulator received more than 35 complaints that these services can be accessed on the territory of the country. Following a probe into the websites that have allegedly been operating illegally in Australia, the regulator found that they have been violating the Interactive Gambling Act of 2001. Now, local ISPs have been addressed by the ACMA with a request to make sure the websites are blocked so that Australian users are no longer able to access them.
The Australian Communications and Media Authority unveiled that the eleven illegal websites to be blocked are: Rich Casino, Omni Slots, Slottica, JokaRoom, XPokies, Happy Hugo, Kahuna Casino, Fruits 4 Real, Blondi Bet, Mucho Vegas Casino and Box 24 Casino.
The communications and media watchdog has reminded that since it was granted the power to address Internet Service Providers to block access to gambling websites operating illegally in the country in November 2019, a total of 66 such websites have faced regulatory action.
ACMA Received the Powers to Suspend Access to Unlawful Gambling Websites in November 2019
Unlawful gambling websites that have been offering their services to Australian customers have seen regulatory action since the ACMA received the power to make blocking requests to ISPs.
Emu Casino and Fair Go Casino were the first online gambling sites to receive blocking orders from the watchdog, while the most recent round of blocking regulatory action saw a total of ten gambling websites suspended in May 2020. The websites that were blocked for local users at the time were Cherry Gold Casino, Grand Fortune Casino, Free Spin, Raging Bull Casino, Slots Empire, True Blue Casino, Wild Joker, BoVegas, Two Up Casino and Red Dog Casino.
As reminded by the Australian Communications and Media Authority, more than 100 illegal gambling services have pulled out of the country’s gambling sector since the regulatory body began the enforcement of the new rules regarding illegal offshore gambling operators three years ago, in 2017.
According to the watchdog, the procedure of suspending unlawful websites offers a valuable opportunity for the authorities to raise the wider public’s awareness of illegal gambling services that are being available on the territory of Australia. As explained by the ACMA, the messaging that appears at the time when an Australian customer is making an attempt to access such a website would alert the public of possible gambling harm.
Customers are also directed to information regarding online gambling available on the official ACMA’s website, where a register of licensed online gambling services is also available.
- Author
Olivia Cole
