ACMA Targets Affiliate Services Promoting Illegal Online Gambling
The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) has declared its intention to concentrate on suppressing affiliate services that guide users to prohibited online gambling platforms in the year 2023.
The ACMA is entrusted with the responsibility of enforcing the provisions of Australia’s Interactive Gambling Act (IGA) that pertain to illegal online gambling and outlined its strategic goals in a recent document.
The ACMA clarified its actions undertaken between July and September and stated that targeting affiliate services that generate traffic to unlawful and offshore services, frequently disguised as independent gambling website evaluators, is a paramount priority in its compliance efforts.
The organization subsequently examined 20 affiliate services over a period of three months to “disrupt the promotion and supply of illicit services within Australia.” The investigation revealed that numerous affiliate services contravened the IGA’s provisions against advertising illegal gambling services and aided in facilitating illegal gambling operations.
Enforcement Measures
The ACMA indicated that enforcement measures were implemented where deemed appropriate. During this process, the agency issued 11 official warnings to the providers of these illicit services.
Steps have been taken to stop Australian citizens from visiting websites that break IGA rules. This has led to eight services being blocked by internet providers, while three other services are still being watched.
The organization said that blocking internet addresses has been successful in stopping traffic from Australia. They claim that website traffic from blocked sites has gone down by 90% to 100%.
“Our experience shows that website blocking has been a useful tool in disrupting (but not stopping) the offering of illegal online gambling and related services to Australian users,” the ACMA said in its report.
Unlawful goods
The organization also finished 12 investigations involving 25 gambling websites, finding 10 violations. A total of 21 websites were found to be offering services that were against the law under the IGA, and 6 websites were found to be offering services without a license.
As a result, official warnings were given to 13 operators and 36 website addresses were reported to “family-friendly” filtering services.
The ACMA also blocked the internet addresses of 96 websites over three months. This work is part of a continuous effort to stop Australian customers from accessing illegal offshore products.
This news comes as Australia introduces new responsible gambling information rules within its new national consumer protection framework.
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