How to Avoid Gambling Scam and Protect Yourself

The online casino industry may seem as intimidating as it is attractive. This guide should help you choose the most trusted online casinos and avoid rogue casinos

Valuable Tips How to Avoid Casino Scams and Gamble Safely

The appeal of online gambling can certainly be irresistible and no one can blame you for falling for its charms. However, there are some important things you need to know about online casinos before you embark on your wild gambling adventure so that it doesn’t end in bitter disappointment because you got scammed.

The first thing you have to do before you start  online gambling is thorough research of the vast offer of online casinos, and don’t stop digging until you are completely sure that you have chosen a reliable, reputable and trustworthy casino to play in.

Here are some red flags and warning signs that should convince you to avoid the casino fraud. These signs are usually hidden to the naive eye of the online gambling novice because they are wrapped up in attractive offers that encourage gambler’s surreal expectations.

The aim of this text, therefore, is to bust all the possible scams and help you avoid shady gambling sites  on your way to getting loads of money while enjoying the thrill only casino games can offer

How to choose a trustworthy casino?

Do tons of research, either by asking for recommendations or canvassing the blacklisted casinos online. This list contains the names of casinos which have in any way mislead or cheated their customers. The endless unmonitored and unregulated Internet universe provides an opportunity for various scamming and fraudulent activities. Online casinoscene is definitely a fertile ground for shady business because it has always been an extremely lucrative market bursting with energy and action. It seemed as it was out of control at the beginning, but over time rules and regulations were passed as well as the regulatory bodies were established to issue licenses and verify the fairness of online casinos.

Simply put the most important thing you should look for when you “enter” the online casino is whether it is licensed by an authorized body. The ones that you would want to see are for example Malta Gaming Authority and  Curacao eGaming, but you should also look for the certificate of reliable software testing companies that make sure the online casino uses reliable Random Number Generator ensuring the fairness of their games in this way.

Other warning signs you shouldn’t ignore are:

• You can’t find the exact information about where the casino is located  
• There is no trace of a license number anywhere on the homepage
• You’ve done a thorough online check and have seen too many comments about the prolonged withdrawal process.
• The gambling site is not powered by a software developer,  well known on the market.

These are five solid reasons why you should run as fast as you can from this kind of online casino.

Red Flags to Pay Attention to

Let’s suppose that you found a perfect casino to play in. You like everything about it, the graphics are amazing it is easy to navigate through, and the selection of games is superb. Additionally, you scrutinized the site thoroughly, and everything seems legit. Still, there are numerous other traps that you can fall into unexpectedly.

1. There is no sign of the RTP or it is pretty low

The most common thing rouged casinos would do is fixing the games so that the house always wins. Although this is the main principle of every casino’s existence, the reliable ones will always be transparent about their RTP of the games they offer. RTP is a percentage of all the bets placed that will be returned to players over a longer period of time. Return to Player is the opposite of the house edge. Even though both of them are calculated over a longer period of time it is obvious that if a house edge for a slot game is for example 15% the expected RTP will be 85% after some time. Verified and trustworthy will always show what the RTP for certain games are usually accompanied by the link that leads to the authorization body that verified it. You can always conduct the research of your own and check what the average RTP rates are. A little hint, the most common RTP rate ranges from 95-98 %.

If the online casino tends to withhold the information about the RTP or it offers an RTP lower than 80%, this is the clear sign that the casino is shady and you should run away without looking back.

2. The Withdrawal process is a never-ending story

Imagine that you have won a considerable amount of money playing your favorite Video Poker game, you are exhilarated about your winnings, and you expect a swift payout as promised. However, days go by and even though you have completed a complex account verification process and the withdrawal should follow, there is no sign of the money. The time passes and as days turn to weeks, the creepy feeling that you are swindled cramps your stomach and plays with your mind. In the end, after a month or so, you finally get in touch with the casino people only to find out that they refuse to pay you out due to some friction of terms and conditions on your part. So before you give your trust to any gambling site make sure that you are familiar with all terms and conditions you should comply with before you start using the services. This is one of the oldest tricks which rouged casinos use to mislead their players and abuse their trust.

3. Personal data intrusion or theft

This has been one of the main reasons that people state when talking about online safety. Many people tend to neglect all the positive things the Internet has brought us so far, and stick to their notion that the Internet is invented to completely expose people and take away every sense of privacy. These notions can be liable to some extent, on the other hand, there are many mechanisms created to ensure the safety of personal or confidential information on the Net like encryption, for example. Shady casino operators don’t offer quality safety measures, quite the contrary, they prey for confidential information such as credit cards numbers in order to misuse them. You can always check if the site is secure by looking for the “https” mark in the URL

4. Modest customer service options

Scam casinos main goal is to stay under the radar asas long as they cancan while performing their shady business. That’s why these casinos don’t offer various contact options to their customers like a live chat or various phone numbers you can use to contact them from different parts of the world. So if you have struggled to find any kind of contact info on the casino’s site, be sure that they exist only to rip you off.

5. Alluring Bonuses

This is another obvious sign that you might be dealing with the rouged online casino. Numerous casinos offer attractive welcome bonuses to their new members, however, this is a perfect chance for the fraud casino to rob you blind. The first lure gullible players by offering fascinating welcome bonuses while perfectly hiding the complex process of getting them. Majority of these bonuses are actually deposit bonuses that require you to place some money in order to claim them. In addition to this, there is usually a number of other conditions to be met or actions to be taken before you finally get them. Players usually give up in the middle of the process, or when they realize that a deposit bonus is a costly “prize”. So don’t fall for the bonuses wrapped in shiny lucrative “once in a lifetime” offers. Reputable casinos rely on other things to attract new members and earn their trust.

How can you protect yourself from a fraud casino

1. Check out the validity of a gambling license

This will get us back to the beginning of this story and the list of the things you need to check out before you start gambling in the online casino you chose.

All reliable and reputable online casinos don’t hold back important information from their players. in other words, you can easily check which regulatory body were they licensed and regulated by. There are clearly presented licenses accompanied by the links leading to above-mentioned regulatory bodies, that can be found on trustworthy and reliable gambling sites. So make sure that everything is approved and verified by the appropriate regulatory body.

2. Check if  the casino runs on the original software

It is a well-known fact who are reliable casino software providers on the online gambling market. Only the best among them are dedicated to providing the casinos with the high-quality safe and fair software. However, many online casinos think that buying a pirate version of some well-known gambling software will save them some money and that gamblers won’t know the difference. This is a very serious issue, however,  because the essential part of the gambling software is a Random Number Generator that ensures the fairness of each game played. If the software isn’t original the RGN cannot be trusted. Even though it is fairly hard to notice the difference between the original software and the fake one after some time spent in online casinos you’ll be able to recognize the original software. But in the beginning, just to avoid the possible scam, opt for online casinos with so-called live dealers rather than the ones that rely on the RNG.

3. Don’t be lazy, study the terms and conditions

This is the most tedious section of every site, not just gambling ones. It is obvious that when you visit an online casino the only thing you want to do is to take a seat at a the favorite game table or a slot machine of choice and make some magic and money. But it really would be a great idea if you take some of your precious gambling time and actually get familiar with the terms and conditions because they contain valuable information for gamblers.

For example, you can find out what are the legal age to start gambling. While some casinos allow people to start gambling at 18. in the United States you have to be over 21 to register an account in the online casino.

The amount of money you can withdraw at once can also be determined by terms and conditions. Simply put, numerous casinos don’t distribute the whole winnings at once but make several smaller payouts instead. This may not necessarily means that the casino have no intention of paying you out, this just may be the way they operate. Check the withdrawal policy to save yourself from the frustration of being paid off in small portions.

Read the terms and conditions to get information about the requirements you need to fulfil to be able to claim the famous welcome bonuses. These requirements are defined to prevent player to cash out soon after they claimed their bonus and played a few high bet games.Now you would have to place a deposit and a bonus money a couple of times before you decide to quit and collect your winnings.While some of these limitations may seem justified because casinos have to secure their profit but other may seem ridiculous to players. There is a widespread notion among experienced gamblers nowadays that the bonuses are highly overestimated and not worthy of your time and money.

4. Choose the casinos with multiple payment options

Trustworthy casinos will always try to offer various deposit and payment options to their customers. These methods should include classic money transactions like bank transfers or credit cards for more traditional players. On the other hand, best online casinos tend to keep up with new trends by offering e-cheques as a means of paying or by accepting increasingly popular Cryptocurrencies for gambling.

If you land on the site that offers just one option for placing a bet or distributing the payout, beware because this may easily be a scam online casino.

Conclusion

Let’s try to wrap up this cautionary tale. However, you’re eager to start your gambling experience try not to rush into it.

Do your research wisely and thoroughly before choosing a favorite casino, always refer to the list of “blacklisted casinos” since they are usually relevant and up-to-date. Always check if the casino holds relevant license issued by the authorized body and also make sure that they provide responsive and high-quality customer service. And finally, just to be on the safe side make an effort and read the terms and conditions section to avoid unpleasant surprises.

Once you are sure that your chosen casino is reliable and trustworthy, you can relax and enjoy the whirlwind world of online gambling.