FreedomAtStake's Blog

Who's protecting the children?

By FreedomAtStake | View all Posts
Posted Monday, May 12, 2008 03:49 PM   4 comments

I don't know whether to laugh or cry.

As somebody who regularly has to defend the online gambling industry against baseless arguments about lax security and the supposedly rampant problem of underage online gambling, I naturally have a mixed opinion about reports like this coming from the GB Group, an identity verification company operating in the UK.

Let me summarize... Yes, teens are using the Internet to access and purchase all kinds of unsuitable material, but none of it is online gambling - it's more like everything else but online gambling.

And the numbers are pretty scary for any parent. According to the article...

  • Nearly half (48%) of teenage boys under 18 have tried to buy adult DVDs or violent video games online in the past year...and over three quarters of these were successful
  • One in 20 (5%) 14 year olds have successfully purchased alcohol online
  • A similar number of 15 year olds have been able to buy dangerous objects online such as knives
  • A quarter (25%) of teenage boys and over a third (38%) of teenage girls under 18 have managed to buy items online using someone else’s credit card

Then the report goes on to say, and I quote:

...while the UK online gambling industry has embraced latest age and ID verification processes, to protect young and vulnerable consumers, the survey shows that online retailers are still failing to verify customer ages: two thirds (66%) of 13-17 year olds have been asked for ID in shops when trying to buy inappropriate material over the past year, yet just 18% of young people have been asked to prove their ID when trying to buy similar items online over the same period.

This is where I don't know how to respond.

One part of me is naturally deeply disturbed by this report, but another part of me is frankly glad that this is something I can really use when debating the security of online gambling sites. As I've said repeatedly, it ain't a problem in our industry. Now I can tell them to take that argument somewhere else where it is a real problem.

I'm also a little pissed when it looks like ours is the only industry doing something about these problems, and yet we seem to take most of the flak.

Who's protecting the children? The gambling sites are! They are the only ones.

It's everybody else that is the problem.

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woopdurritis says:
05/12/08 04:07PM
I agree with you that a of underage kids use the internet for illegal or non appropriate activities, but I don't see where gambling websites are any different.  Although they have gotten a lot more difficult to access since the United States attempted to ban online gambling, it is still doable... and underage kids still partake in it.
FreedomAtStake says:
05/13/08 08:56AM
woop,

You are right, of course. There are still some lax sportsbooks out there that don't verify ages although probably most now do. It's a matter of being sensible. They can't afford to have a lot of chargebacks put their processing accounts at risk, so they do whatever possible to ensure the account is real and verified.

But if Junior uses Dad's credit card, there is not much they can do.

But what this study is referring to is that age verification is pretty much non-existent on other sites offering goods and services that can be a LOT worse than simply making a bet.

My point is: where are people's priorities?

They spend all of their time worrying that little Johnny might be able to place a bet - when he likely can't - and they don't seem to care that Johnny actually probably is spending a lot of time viewing nasty porn and buying weapons or alcohol online.

KingSerf says:
05/13/08 07:49PM
Thanks for pointing out the near Fort Knox nature of on line gambling security. Not only do some services reject certain credit and debit cards, but most go to great lengths when players set up accounts linked to their checking accounts. For example, I actually had to send a scanned copy of my driver's license and voided check to my favorite off shore site.

I must add that normally when a Visa credit or debit card is used for any business based outside the United States, Visa security reps will try to contact the user by phone to verify the purchase.

I certainly hope these negative studies do not add to the already difficult issue of legalizing on line sports wagering in America.

A few things keep swimming circles like sharks in my mind:

First, parents must do a better job of communicating and disciplining their children. I am so sick of "parents" constantly blaming today's culture. No one can alter the shift and change of culture as time marches on. Only a moron would believe that the so-called "safe, secure, nifty" culture of the 1940s and 1950s can be achieved in the 21st century. What is highly plausible and arguably most effective is heightened awareness and involvement by parents.

Next, I very much doubt that these addicted youths are sports handicappers in the making. As a poster already commented, poker is more than likely the vice.

Finally, the upside to the legalization of on line sports wagering...or "gambling" if you prefer to use a word with negative connotations...far outweighs the potential problems. When are the idiotic powers that be in America going to realize that the economy doesn't just need a boost (or a "stimulus package" as the "elected" monkey likes to call it), it needs a rabies sick overload of financial shots - to every state for all kinds of causes and concerns. Simply apply fair taxation, and even use the revenue like the massive funds gained from the lottery and scratch-off tickets.

lonetreejj says:
05/14/08 08:55AM
King Serf, states the root of the problem quite accurately and succinctly. The lack of parenting discipline can only lead to even less disciplined offspring. Born in 1961, I revered my father thru highschool. I grew up with a healthy fear of god (and papa's wrath) instilled in me by my parents.

All children should have said reverence, as (no matter how astute a child) there is unfamiliarity with the cinicism and evil of the world in youth. I grew up as a military brat. If I were to get in trouble with the law, my father had to deal with the consequences... which could include demotion (stripping of rank) and/or dishonorable discharge.

Parents should be held more accountable for the indisgressions of minor children. I'm not advocating prosecution... but perhaps a ticketing/point system, where fines can be issued and points accumulated, that would require attending a class - similar to the requirements of point accumulation on your drivers license.

Real 'new world' problems.... let us consider some 'new world' solutions.

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User: Freedom@Stake
Joined: July 1995
Location: Ireland
Team: Florida State Seminoles
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