The Slovak gaming authority, the Gambling Regulatory Authority, has released a whitelist of websites run by authorized operators to help players recognize which offerings are legal.
Authorities have also maintained similar public registrations for historically illegal websites.
Dávid Lenčéš, General Director of the Authority, emphasized the ingenuity of gray and black market operators in a statement explaining the new features.
“We prevent one illegal website from running and another website is created quickly. There is no limit to the creativity of the operator,” says Lenčéš.
“They often try to motivate players with attractive bonus offers, modern visuals, unlimited deposits, and, in the case of foreign operators, the perfect Slovak language. Players check out the required details on the website. If you don’t, there may be no reason to suspect that it is illegal content operating outside our country. “
“But by playing on illegal websites, they are depriving them of the possibility of winning prizes and legal protection under the laws in force in the Republic of Slovakia,” Lenčéš added.
Lenčéš went on to explain the risks that player takers take when gambling with unlicensed operators.
The “Legal Websites” section publishes all licensed websites for licensed entities. This means that everything else not on this list is illegal. Illegal websites can steal players’ stakes and prizes and are available to risk groups where gambling can bring mental health. “
“To make it easier to obtain information about the legality of our website, we have shown the extent to which we can play online gambling games under the control of valid Slovak law.”
To qualify for listing, a legitimate website must meet the obligations stipulated by the gambling law of that country.
“There are tools that enable remote monitoring. If a breach is found, there are sanctions and in some cases the license may be removed.”
Sanctions also apply to anyone promoting illegal sites such as affiliates. Sanctions run from € 50,000 (£ 43,000 / $ 51,000) for humans to € 250,000 (£ 215,000 / $ 255,000) for those behind AI promotions.
In June, authorities also launched an initiative to limit gambling advertising in Central European countries.
