New powers introduced to block illegal offshore gambling sites

They take in $400 million a year and rob Australia of $100 million in taxes, but now internet providers will be forced to block them.

Internet companies will be forced to block websites of illegal offshore gambling operators to protect Australians from the “unscrupulous” operators who refuse to pay out winnings.

The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) will start requesting internet service providers (ISPs) block the offending websites from today.

ACMA chair Nerida O’Loughlin said the changes are needed to stop punters being ripped off.

“In many cases these sites refuse to pay significant winnings, or only a small portion,” Ms O’Loughlin said.

“Customers had also experienced illegal operators continuing to withdraw funds from their bank account without authorisation. There is little to no recourse for consumers engaging with these unscrupulous operators,” she added.

Gamblers who currently have money deposited with the illegal sites are warned they should withdraw them now.

Gamblers placing bets online need to check if their favourite site is following the law.

Ms O’Loughlin said being able to have ISPs block access to the illegal gambling sites would be a “valuable additional weapon” in ACMA’s fight against illegal online gambling.

“We have been targeting illegal gambling services we know are active in the Australian market through complaints received and monitoring. But we expect that list of sites will grow as we investigate more,” Ms O’Loughlin said.

Websites found to be in breach of the rules governing online gambling but which continue operating can now be blocked from being accessed in Australia.

The change is the result of the 2015 O’Farrell Review into Illegal Offshore Wagering, and is the final implementation from the review, which has also placed the directors of offending companies on the Department of Home Affairs Movement Alert List so they set off red flags if they try to travel to Australia, as well as introducing new consumer protection initiatives such as the National Self-Exclusion Register that allows problem gamblers to ban themselves from wagering apps.

Minister for Communications and Cyber Safety Paul Fletcher said the changes are necessary to stop the dodgy sites running off with people’s money.

“Illegal overseas gambling companies are preying on Australians by targeting them with misleading incentives. Consumers have no recourse to retrieve their money,” Minister Fletcher said.

ACMA has a new plan to combat the illegal offshore sites.

The Minister said we spend as much as $400 million a year with illegal offshore gambling websites, costing the country a further $100 million in lost tax revenue.

He said the new powers will give ACMA a fighting chance against the “faceless companies with no legal presence on our shores”.

The ISP blocks are intended to operate as a last resort for when the powers ACMA already have are not strong enough to stop the sites continuing to operate in Australia.

ACMA maintains a list of all 36 registered and licensed online gaming and betting operators on its website.

70 per cent of those on the list are registered in the Northern Territory, taking advantage of lower tax rates that allow them to make billions of dollars while paying less than $600,000 a year in tax.

The NT government has recently considered raising that tax rate but is yet to do so.

Do you place bets online? Let us know what you think of the new plan to block some sites.