How to avoid casino scams

The global gambling industry is growing rapidly, breaking its own revenue records. This colossal segment is worth around $90 billion, and online services play a major part in its success.

Unfortunately, legit businesses coexist with rogue casinos, and users must be cautious. Follow our tips to avoid getting scammed out of your deposits.

Signs of a scam

Reputable casinos reviewed by Source.Bet are properly licensed and responsible.

Low-life operators misuse players' funds and personal information. Hiding behind the anonymity of the internet, they advertise lavish bonuses to lure in more victims. Here are four red flags.

1.   Payment Issues

Different payment methods have different processing times — from seconds to several days. It is perfectly normal for a website to impose a fixed pending period for withdrawals (e.g., 48 hours).

This delay gives players an opportunity to cancel their requests. Every gambling site wants users to keep on playing as long as possible.

Scammers take forever to send withdrawals or fail to process them at all. Typically, once the specified period is up, players are ignored or provided with continuous excuses. Some victims receive a part of their payout, others get nothing at all.

To see if an operator delivers on its promises, check review sites, forums and social media communities. Rogue casinos cannot delete all complaints fast enough. 

2.   Licensing

Savvy players know better than to register on unregulated websites. Illegal casinos can circumvent this obstacle in two ways. First, they may register in jurisdictions where the rules are the least stringent.

Secondly, they may simply slap a logo from any of their regulatory boards on their sites. Licensing is the first thing professional reviewers analyse.

3.   Pirated software

Some of the biggest names in the gambling software industry are Microgaming, Evolution Gaming, and NetEnt.

Trustworthy providers purchase games along with RNGs. Scammy casinos hack this software, so the vendor may no longer control it. Then, they alter the paytable configuration.

4.   “Too good to be true” offers

An offer of $1,500 can only be legit if it comprises a series of match bonuses.

Scammers use unrealistic amounts like “$1,000 for free” to attract gullible gamblers. They also set impossible wagering requirements, so you will never withdraw the “gift”.

The wagering or playthrough requirement is a multiplier like 60x. It shows the number of times you must wager the bonus. Always read the fine print and never take offers at face value. 

Casino blacklists

Rogue casinos are blacklisted quite quickly, and these lists are easy to find.

Quite a few websites are committed to tracking down the worst of the worst. It is very difficult for a casino to get off a blacklist unless there is a mistake.

Can you trust Bitcoin casinos?

The adoption of cryptocurrency around the world is growing by leaps and bounds. Gambling is one of the many industries that have embraced blockchain technology.

Crypto deposits do not make a casino unreliable by default. On the contrary, such sites give players the fastest and safest payment method in existence.