These days you can’t be too careful with your money.
As the internet has grown and thrived, so have online businesses, which has led to a boom in online transactions. Online sales in the US are expected to rise to $207 billion this year, but with so many sales happening over the web, they become vulnerable to fraud. The Federal Trade Commission has said that online shopping results in the second most number of fraud complaints after identity theft, with $3.3 billion in losses due to fraud being reported overall. Cyber Fraud is on the rise in the United States, posing problems for anyone using the internet, but when card details are involved, the threat increases. When shopping or spending online, you have to ask yourself: How safe is your money?
Online casinos are on the rise across the US, and they too present an opportunity for fraud. Globe News Wire reports the industry pulled in nearly $2 billion; more states are legalizing and regulating online casinos and gambling in general, so it was an inevitable change in the industry. With so much money changing hands, it is important to understand how they are keeping your cash safe from fraud and theft.
Many providers offer a range of payments for convenience, which is a USP they often use to sell their services. Indeed, Foxy Bingo provides online casino games, and they explain on their homepage how their software is secure and encrypted for maximum safety. They offer payment through secure methods such as Giropay by Skrill and are regulated by gaming bodies in both Gibraltar and the UK. It’s not something they’re alone in either; most reputable providers are required to prove that safety to their customers. Here in the US, there is online gambling legislation at two levels, federal and state, and providers must comply with both. Indeed, reputable providers don’t just claim to be safe, it is demanded and a provision they must have in place, but does it guarantee your financial safety? Are they any safer than online shops, courtesy of the regulation?
Here’s how major online casino providers strive to keep your money safe.
The Big Three
There are three things that you should check before you use any online casino. They are Security, Licensing, and Encryption. There should be information about what security protocols the site uses on their website for all their customers to see. There should also be a list of the government licensing authorities that the site is regulated by. This will change on a country-by-country or, in the case of the US, a state-by-state basis. Finally, you should be able to tell if the site is encrypted by the padlock that appears beside the URL. If any of these things aren’t readily available on the site, it probably isn’t safe to send them your money.
Firewalls
A firewall is a basic form of internet security, so it shouldn’t be a surprise to find one at an online casino. There are plenty of types of them but their primary function is to regulate what traffic enters and leaves the site’s servers. This helps to prevent hackers from installing malicious code on the server and from gaining access to their user data. If an online casino doesn’t have a firewall installed on its servers then it is more vulnerable to security threats and should be avoided if possible.
A Variety of Payment Methods
Today, there are more ways to pay than ever before. From credit and debit card transactions to PayPal to cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, it should be easy and convenient to spend your money at an online casino. If a site doesn’t accept multiple payment methods or, worse yet, they insist on unsecured methods like bank transfer or Bitcoin, then it could be a sign that they don’t provide high enough security standards for other, more mainstream payment processing.
