Will American Players be just as Protected as UK Players?

Online gamblers in the UK have some of the very best safety protocols available at the moment. Part of the reason for this, is that the UKGC (United Kingdom Gambling Commission) is known as one of the strongest regulators on the market. With the US just starting to dip its toe in the online gambling world, it is sensible to ask whether US players will get the same levels of protection. We have taken a close look into what protections US players can expect to find.

What do UK players get?

UK players have full safeguards in place from the UKGC. This is in the form of responsible gambling protocols, site security, and payment protections. It means that providing players choose a regulated site to play at, their stake is safe when playing at an online casino in the country. Fortunately, US players have similar protections in place. As long as they play at a regulated site, then they will be protected. A great example of this, is the list of secure mobile casinos on GambleUSA. All of these sites have regulation in place, and this ensures that players don’t have to worry when it comes to playing on a mobile device.

What should US players expect?

The first thing to always look for, is an SSL certificate. While this isn’t directly linked to the regulator, it’s the very first thing that every online casino should have available. It means that all connections in and out of the site are encrypted. This means your data. If your data is encrypted, then it means that it can’t be used by hackers. As such, you don’t have to worry when creating your account at the site, as all personal information is encrypted, and protected.

The second thing to look into, is regulation. US sites are regulated by the state government. This is different to how the UK works, which has an independent regulator for the entire country. Part of the reason for the US having a slightly different system, is because not all states have legalised gambling, so it is down to the discretion of each individual state.

This doesn’t mean that the state regulators are not strict though. In fact, they are widely regarded as being almost on a par with the UK regulator. So, this means that sites can’t be set up without proof of funds which are needed to show that they can meet any payout requirements. They also have to use legitimate games, and not modified games that behave unfairly. This is all in place to protect the player and make sure that they aren’t treated poorly.

Finally, you should look to make sure that the site has trusted payment methods available. This is always important, as verified payment methods will allow you to cancel a payment if you can prove that something unfair took place. So, for example if an online casino took your money and never allowed you to play with it, you would be able to cancel that payment and get it back into your account. As long as you are playing at a regulated site, then you would be able to get the backing from the state at the same time.

Offshore gambling sites

This is something that has been around pretty much since the dawn of the internet. Because online gambling wasn’t regulated in the USA for a long time, it meant that most online players used offshore sites to play games. These sites were deemed to be quite trustworthy, but there were still some sites out there that didn’t offer a legitimate service. Because they weren’t regulated, it meant that players couldn’t do much about it if they were scammed either.

So, it makes sense to avoid offshore sites completely now that legitimate sites are available to players. While this does mean that the legitimate offshore sites won’t get business anymore, it means that it’s a lot easier to avoid the untrustworthy sites. Players just have to choose a regulated site, and from there, they can enjoy worry free online gambling.

Because almost all of the regulated sites are operated by well-known names in the casino world, it does mean that there’s already a high level of trust in place with them. So, it does mean that players are making a move into the online gambling world with some trusted names. This is yet another reason why using an offshore site is no longer a viable option when it comes to online gambling in the USA.