Online gambling isn’t generally regarded as a particularly dangerous activity. Unfortunately, though, it is. Now more than ever people are having to take steps to protect themselves from organised gangs of criminals. Cybercrime has never been as much of a threat as it is today. Even the head of the European Union’s security wing made a statement comparing the Internet to the Wild West. Because when you sign up for and begin using online casinos you submit personal and financial information, you are a potentially lucrative target for criminals.
Hacking is the main threat posed to users of online casinos. Scams are another. Scams are less severe because the average person is savvy enough after a life’s worth of Internet use to spot them. With that being said, there is no shame in not being able to identify hack attempts. If you are not very good at identifying them then now’s the time to take action and rethink your attitude to the web. This post will explore this topic in more detail, providing useful information that you can use to protect yourself when you are gambling online for the first or hundredth time.
Finding and Using Reliable Casinos
In truth, the most effective way to avoid scams on the internet is to make sure that you only ever use trusted, licensed casinos. Whether it’s a trusted online casino in Malaysia or one hosted in the United States, you need to make sure that the site you are using has a positive reputation with its users and is not known for scamming people. Below, you will find all of the ways of determining whether or not a website is trustworthy so that you can make sure you do not sign up for a fraudulent one.
1. Reading Reviews
If you are somebody who plans on using online casinos, read reviews. A website’s reviews can tell you a lot about it and make the process of determining whether you are going to use it a lot easier. Bear in mind that some websites fabricate their reviews. You can spot fake reviews by looking for bad grammar and spelling mistakes. If you are going to use a casino, reviews can be the best way of finding out whether or not the site is genuine.
2. Online Research
In addition to reading online reviews, you also need to conduct basic online research. If you have never had to verify a website’s validity before then it is unlikely you will know how to conduct proper online research. One of the first things you need to do is search the website’s name up on Google, Yahoo or on Bing. If you find any reviews or articles discussing the website that suggest it cannot be trusted, immediately read them and then see if you can find any further information. Verify the validity of the review website, too.
3. Internet Guides
Internet guides can be great resources to turn to if you are looking for information about a specific casino. Usually, you can find them by conducting searches like those mentioned in the previous section. If you are planning on reading an internet guide, then again, verify the validity of the website you are using. If the website you are reading cannot be trusted then obviously you shouldn’t take what they say very seriously. Internet guides are widely available and usually genuine, although some sites have popped up in recent years that are not to be trusted.
4. Using Forums
Forums can be great places to turn if you are interested in finding out whether or not a site can be trusted. Make sure that you use forums frequented by other gamblers. Finding forums today is not as easy as it used to be in the past. Various articles and investigations have been published detailing the collapse of online forum use. But that being said of course, there are still some holding on, which means that you should be able to find one if you are interested in signing up for one. If you cannot find any existing posts about the casino that you want to use, create one yourself. The people that use the forum should then be able to help you to turn on whether or not you can trust the site.
5. Consider Chatrooms
chat rooms are worth considering as well. There are lots of online gambling chat rooms that you can join. Some chat rooms exist exclusively in online casinos and others are available to the public without casino registrations being necessary. If you are planning on signing up for and using a chatroom, make sure that you safeguard and protect your personal information. Do not make the mistake of signing up for a fraudulent chatroom, created to harvest people’s personal and financial data. Such chatrooms are all over the place and can be very hard to avoid.
6. SSL Certificate
Ensure that the casino you are using has an SSL certificate. An SSL certificate is a digital certificate that essentially authenticates a website’s validity and enables encrypted connections. Using unencrypted websites is a very unwise thing to do. If the casino you have chosen does not have an SSL certificate then under no circumstances should you sign up for it. SSL certificates are immediately viewable in a website’s URL so they cannot be missed.
7. Online Privacy
Finally, think about your online privacy when you are signing up for a casino. Be very careful about what information you submit. Of course, casinos are going to need you to submit your credit card information otherwise you won’t be able to make deposits and withdrawals. Do not submit any information other than that. Make sure that you do not connect your bank account with the casino that you are using either. If a casino asks you to connect a PayPal or bank account with them, find another to use. The chances are that in such circumstances the casino is fraudulent.
Safeguarding Your Information
If you are somebody interested in protecting yourself on the internet, the first thing that you need to do is to learn about the basics of protecting your personal and financial information on the internet. When a lot of people use the internet they are very careless with how they use and handle their data. If you don’t take steps to protect yours then it could fall into the wrong hands. Criminals are present in many different places online, constantly searching for people’s personal information.
You might be asking yourself, “Why do people want my data?” The answer to this question is very straightforward: they can impersonate you. By having your personal and financial information, criminals can take out loans in your name or open new bank accounts. As mentioned earlier, when you are signing up for casinos make sure that you are very selective about which ones you choose to use so that you can ensure you avoid ones run by criminals or by people who are trying to harvest data. A good way to identify a criminal casino is to see if it has an SSL certificate or not, as noted above.
Always Using VPNs
VPNs (virtual private networks) are programmes that people use when they are browsing the Internet to make sure that nobody is able to track them and their movements. By downloading and using a VPN you will be able to stop people from monitoring your online activity. Recent research has uncovered shocking evidence of people’s ISPs selling their personal information to marketing companies. You therefore not only need to activate a VPN to protect yourself from criminals but also from your ISP, who could be monitoring and selling your information and search history.
Defined a VPN all you need to do is conduct a simple Internet search. One of the main benefits of using one when you are playing online casinos is that it will stop criminals from being able to monitor what you are doing. Because when you are using an online casino, there is a chance you will be typing your personal and financial details in, a VPN will safeguard you from hacking attempts and fraudulent interceptions. Make sure the VPN you use is one that is affordable. Some VPNs can be very expensive and are therefore not ideal.
Activating a Firewall
A firewall is another type of programme that is used by people to protect themselves when they’re using the Internet. Unlike VPNs, firewalls actively protect against hack attempts. It is entirely possible for somebody to hack your device while you were using a VPN, it is just a little bit more difficult for them to do. When you have a firewall activated, it is almost impossible for hackers to penetrate your device. The good thing about firewalls is that in addition to protecting people from hack attempts, they also identify viruses that have been accidentally downloaded, and tell people whether or not websites they’re using are safe.
When you are looking for a firewall to download, you need to make sure that you look carefully. Not all firewalls confer as much protection as you need. Some are rubbish, in fact. A good way to tell whether or not a firewall is worth using is to read reviews. A firewalls reviews should tell you everything you need to know about it. If you need to know further information then you can always reach out to the company behind the firewall. When you are reaching out make sure that you are very specific in the questions that you need answered. Being indirect can lead to your queries being mishandled.
Reporting Suspicious Websites
When you were using the Internet to find online casinos, sooner or later you are going to come across a fortunate website. Unfortunately, fraudulent websites were all over the Internet. It is how you deal with these websites when you come across them that defines your experience as an internet user. If you blindly sign up for them, then you are essentially opening yourself up to fraud. Take the precautions outlined here so that you can avoid online scams and prevent yourself from ever having to worry about being scammed.
A good way to make sure that other people do not fall for the tricks of criminal gangs is to report suspicious websites. Depending on where the website is hosted, the host country’s online fraud bureau should be able to put a stop to it. Of course, if the casino is hosted in a country whose residents speak a language you do not, you may need to employ a translator. You can pay a person to translate for you or use an online program to do your translation work, saving you time and money.
Keeping Two Bank Accounts
One last thing that you might want to consider doing if you’re planning on using the Internet to gamble but do not want to become a victim of fraud then the best thing to do is to open two bank accounts. By opening two bank accounts, you’ll be able to protect yourself from criminals, because they will not be able to steal money from your main account. Most banks allow you to open savings accounts. Typically, savings accounts do not come with debit cards, meaning that they cannot be used for routine, everyday purchases. By opening a savings account and keeping all of your money in it, you will have somewhere to protect your money.
Every single time that you want to make a purchase, you can then go onto your online banking app and transfer money from your savings account to your current account. In order for criminals to steal your money, they will have to have access to your mobile banking app or information about you that they can use to call up your bank and process a transfer. Make sure that would you assessing up your mobile banking app please set a password that is very difficult for people to guess. If your password is not hard for people to guess common criminals will be able to gain access to your accounts.
Online security has never been more important. If you are a regular user of online casinos or just the Internet in general, then you need to follow the steps given here so that you can protect yourself. Leaving yourself unprotected means that you could become a victim of fraud. Fraud is rampant today, and nobody is safe from it.
