In just five years New York has set the standard for regulated, legal sportsbetting. With some of the strongest consumer protections in the country, the state has demonstrated how legal and regulated sports betting can protect consumers, offer the critical transparency demanded to ensure integrity, and promote responsibility while also generating over $1 billion a year in tax revenue to support public education. In contrast, illegal offshore betting websites, who long held a monopoly over New Yorkers, contribute zero tax dollars and shirk every imaginable responsibility to protect consumers and promote integrity. Unfortunately, we have more work to do to fully eliminate these illegal actors, who remain motivated to undermine the safeguards the state has worked so hard to build.
Both law enforcement officials and consumer protection advocates have recently warned the public about the dangers posed by unregulated offshore betting sites. A recent investigation by the Better Business Bureau found a history of these unregulated platforms cheating customers, leaving them with little to no recourse. “With billions of dollars flowing through this global industry, a risky underbelly of pseudo-gambling, illegal gambling and scams has developed,” the Better Business Bureau report states. “Because of the sophistication of these impostors, bad actors and scammers, it can be hard for consumers to tell the difference between a legitimate bookkeeper, casino or betting company and those seeking to deceive or steal from the public.”
