After safe online transactions became viable in the early 1990s, it didn’t take long for the first functional casino to be introduced into the online space. Developed by Microgaming, the very first online casino was launched in 1994, and since then, more and more online casinos have joined the party.
Thirty years later, however, the world is a very different place. With cybersecurity now a top priority, it has become far more common for online hackers to target online casinos and attempt to take advantage of players. For this reason, it has similarly become a top priority for casinos to ensure player safety and develop a space where players can not only play their favourite games but feel secure while they are doing so.
This is one of the first things I – and many others – look for when we’re finding the best new online casinos. Of course, the library of games is important. The game quality, UI, navigation, and payment methods all play a big part in what makes a casino good, but none of them means anything if the casino is not safe or reliable enough to enjoy them.
You’ve probably heard the same thing, but what exactly should you be looking for if you’re exploring new casino sites? Although we’re all aware of cybersecurity, online casinos were built around convenience and speed, so the last thing we want to be doing is spending a lot of time analysing their reliability.
Well, thankfully, you don’t have to. I’ve found that the ability to ascertain whether a casino is safe can be done in 3 simple steps, so to help keep you safe – and get you playing your favourite games as soon as possible – I’ve listed these steps below, as well as a few pointers on why they’re so essential.
Table of Contents
1. Licence and Regulation
The very first thing you should check after stumbling across a new casino is the licence and regulation. No matter where the online casino is based, it should have a licence given by one of the local regulators, demonstrating that it has passed security tests – including tests on payments, encryption, and user-focused data storage – and is safe to operate.
Typically, this can be done by searching for the licence type in the footer of the main page – you should see it next to the company name – and checking the registration number. On the official website, you can then check that the licence is still valid in line with the regulatory body, with the date of certification locatable alongside the details of the company itself. The licence logo should also be on the casino’s homepage – this will be the logo of the gambling authority, with its certification once again in the footer. Once you have checked through all of this – which should only take a couple of minutes – then you can be assured that the company is operating safely in line with regulations.
2. Peer-Reviews
You shouldn’t stop there, however. Just because a casino is fully licensed and regulated doesn’t mean it’s as reliable as every other casino out there. Before you even play a game, I’ve found that reading through peer reviews can help understand a casino’s safety reputation. I find the most trustworthy sites will have plenty of reviews written by both community members and industry experts.
The ones that I look out for are the reviews written by regulatory agencies, established in the iGaming field and written with the user’s best interests in mind. Examples of regulatory agencies for you to keep at the front of your mind:
- Malta Gaming Authority
- UK Gambling Commission
- Gibraltar Gambling Commission
- The Curacao Licence
In my experience, these reviewers will have looked into the casino far more efficiently than the regular player, so I found it important to seek them out first and then move on to community reviews to get an idea of their wider reputation.
3. Live Customer Support
There are a few other things I tend to look into once this is all done. I think payment methods, for instance, can be a clear indicator of a company’s security – I find legitimate casinos will utilise major, multiple payment methods that cater to as many people as possible. I also look at their gaming practices – whether the casino uses RNG software and what the RTP is for most games – and what sort of encryption the casino has applied to protect user data.
In my opinion, however, one of the most important ‘final checks’ should be the live customer support. If I have any issues with the above factors, I want to know that you can contact the casino 24/7 and receive useful, authoritative help from a live representative. If I know that the casino excels in this area, I feel safe in the knowledge that there’s help available if there’s ever an issue – whether that’s compensation, payment questions, or account closure.
These are the three main things I look out for, but it should be noted that you can never waste time checking a casino’s safety. Before playing any games, I think it’s always best to analyse as many of their safety features as possible, making sure that your experience is going to be completely secure.