Online casinos started popping up in the mid-1990s when countries like Antigua, Curacao, Panama, and the Canadian Native American territory of Kahnawake began allowing companies to offer remote gaming/betting from within their borders legally. At first, these spots’ regulators were pretty lax in the licensing criteria they implemented regarding games’ winning percentages. Yet, over the years, they have tightened up in this department, making this industry section boast even higher standards than its land-based counterpart.
In the late 1990s, the online gambling sphere was a bit of a Wild West, and players could quickly encounter products that seldom paid out at licensed and unlicensed sites. Today, things stand very differently, even though some gamblers have raised doubts that even top-name brands engage in nefarious practices regarding online games that produce wins.
One such recent example is the case of self-described gambling addict Sam Antar, who is suing the BetMGM app and Borgata Casinos for exploiting his impulse control issues and for their games purposefully (allegedly) disconnecting to stop him when he was doing well, leading him to lose in the neighborhood of $30 million.
It is highly unlikely that famed operators would get involved in such shady dealings, as the consequences of their participation could be devastating for their reputations. Still, some lower-ranked platforms do this, and below, we inform you how to tell when something suspicious is afoot.
Lack of Transparency
Renowned game providers and online gambling operators should clearly outline the return-to-player percentages of all their featured products. That setting is what most call the house edge. Yet, RTP is the more established term in software gaming, defining how much-wagered funds a game will return as rewards to its player pool over time.
Product suppliers of note outline the default RTP and the RTP variants; their titles can be available on their websites. Operators should clearly state what RTP version of a featured game they are hosting so that gamblers know their profit odds if they select to play that gaming product.
Regulators also mandate that gambling sites cannot exceed a specific RTP percentage for their games. For instance, the Malta Gaming Authority allowed a minimum RTP of 92% for the longest time, but in 2021, they lowered this spec rule by seven percent. That is still significantly higher than Nevada’s 75% minimum and slightly above New Jersey’s 83% condition.
Frequent Disconnections
Like in the BetMGM blackjack rigged case cited above, something that newcomers to the Internet gambling landscape should be aware of when enjoying software games is that in their terms, it states that malfunctions void wins. That is a sector norm, and it refers to the fact that if a glitch, crash, freeze, disconnection, or any other problem occurs during gameplay, all results get voided. It does not matter if they are winning or losing outcomes.
That clause protects platforms from disputes and losses connected to technical issues, leaving them unaccountable for computer-based errors. That said, dubious sites may abuse this and intentionally disconnect high-winning outcomes. To learn about unethical practices, an operator may engage in; it is best to read as many reviews as possible before signing up with an Internet gaming hub.
Manipulated Reviews or Ratings
On the topic of reviews, especially on-site ones and those on closely linked affiliate partners, dishonest ones may get posted that look to create a false sense of security in gamblers. These inflated ratings and opinions are usually generic or excessively positive, needing more detail and a personal experience. Sites may also post big wins in banners and newsletters to artificially boost the perception that massive payouts are common on their hubs. But, their marketing tactics are nothing more than advertisements designed to fashion a misleading perspective of easy incoming wins.
Game-of-chance enthusiasts should be wary of disproportionately high ratings. They should also cross-reference multiple sources before registering with a considered brand. They should also remember that operators often associate high-volatility games with low RTP with various promotions since these titles rarely pay out.
Poorly Explained or Unjustified Bans
Many gambling sites are not too keen on giving users their winnings. They credit deposits instantly but take days to supply gamblers with their prizes. Some unscrupulous platforms take a step further by implementing account bans after someone wins a substantial amount or takes forever to produce a reward, hoping that a user will give up requesting it to avoid further hassles. The terrifying thing is that these incidents can happen arbitrarily and often without a clear explanation.
Immoral platforms seek to protect their interests by adding terms that give them the discretion to impose account restrictions as they see fit. If they have no license or are overseen by a lax regulator, they do this without fear of facing consequences. So, they can claim that someone has abused bonuses, used a VPN, or incorporated software tools in their session and refuse a payout on these grounds.
That is why it is pivotal that everyone looks for vague policy language that leaves little recourse in disputes.
