Asia crackdown on illegal online gambling

Gamblers in the Philippines and Malaysia are being affected by a crackdown of illegal online gaming activities that is taking place in Asia at the moment. We have all heard of online gambling issues in the United States but it is interesting to see how those two countries in Asia are dealing with this type of situation.

Back in 2010, Asia’s Gambling Authorities had arrested about 700 people and confiscated over 2,500 computers over illegal online gambling activities. But those law enforcement agencies seem to be less tolerant over time. And early this year, they had detained 800 people and 4,000 computers were taken away.

The people who were arrested had been previously detained by the Police. Those repeat convicts were using online gambling services at about 50 locations. As Asia views illegal online gambling as being a serious legal issue, they try to deal with it as quickly and efficiently possible.

The 1953 Common Gaming House Act as well as the 1997 Entertainment and Places of Entertainment Act, which are both in force in the Philippines and Malaysia, forbids online gambling and allows lawbreakers to be arrested. It does not stop here as law enforcement agencies are closely monitoring internet cafés to ensure that those places are not being used to access illegal gambling websites. If someone is caught gambling illegally at an internet café, both the player and the owner of the café can be prosecuted.

Attention has always been focused on illegal gambling activities. But more focus is being applied to the people working in and around this business. Just as Asia’s Gambling Authorities do; that is cracking down on people involved in illegal activities, the United States should perhaps learn from them and start prosecuting such individuals promptly.

As an example, for the Fult Tilt Poker scandal, there has been some closure as Group Bernard Tapie has acquired the business from the US Department of Justice. However, even if people have been indicted in this case, we have yet to hear the end of it. Perhaps arresting people who had played on the illegal online gambling site would discourage them to retry their luck at illegal online gambling businesses in the future.

Written for I Gambling by Helen.