One of our main missions is to expose dishonest gambling sites. Below, you’ll find a collection of scam reports on online casinos, sportsbooks and other gambling sites that still operate today.
Most of the actions of these rip-off operations center around refusing to pay customer winnings, that’s hardly the only reason you should never sign-up at these gambling websites (although should be enough of a reason by itself). In short, you’re more likely to have an awful experience at any of these rogue websites than if you were to choose one of the legitimate gambling sites.
Finding Safe Sites / Avoiding Rogue Sites
Fortunately, identifying rogue sites is not the most difficult task in the world. You’ll only run into a problem site if you fail to do any research on the casino or sportsbook and rush to make a deposit. Here’s a great checklist to use when contemplating on signing-up at casino or sportsbook of whiches history and track record you’re unaware of:
- Search Google.
A quick way to check if a site is safe and legitimate is to take a look at the search results for queries like “[Casino Name] Scam” or [Casino Name] Complaints”. The results are often quite telling. Simply searching for a review of the site can be misleading since plenty of sites recommend rip-off gambling websites based on how much advertising money they receive. - See What Watchdog Sites Have to Say.
There are several casino and sportsbook watchdog gambling websites out there — we could be considered one as well even though that has not been our primary focus with this site. Either way, if you see reports of rip-offs, it’s best to not to take a risk and stay away from those sites. You might also take a look at our payout speed reports to see which sites make it their mission to deliver cashouts promptly. - Check for License.
Has the site been licensed by trusted jurisdictions like Malta, Gibraltar or the Isle of Man (US-accepting sites are usually based out of Antiqua or Costa Rica)? And more importantly, can you find the license at their site? Missing license information is a huge warning sign. - Check for Auditing Agency.
Does the company have information on which agency audits its games? Preferably, you can even find reports of payout percentages for the casino (for example, most eCogra-audited casinos publish payout percentages). - Check for Predatory Terms.
Going through all of terms and conditions can be a tedious task, considering they often go into tens (if not hundreds) of pages of text written in the most boring fashion. However, the most important details to check for are a site’s withdrawal policy and bonus terms–being able to withdraw your money whenever you like and having a realistic chance of clearing the bonus (remember to also check which games the bonus applies to) are important details of a legitimate casino & sportsbook. - Use Forums.
Perhaps the best way to stay in the loop is to join an active online gambling community and look for the areas where people discuss the reliability of these sites. In my opinion, forums are extremely useful specifically because they give the community a way to connect and share experiences.
In short, finding a safe and reliable website to play at for real money requires some work (unless you want to take a look at our list of safe & trusted gambling sites). But it pays off by providing you with a secure gambling enviroment.