The scope of the online betting represents a sector of great attraction, capable of offering an exciting yet risky experience. The pitfalls in this sector are not lacking, first of all the rather dangerous possibility of relying on illegal platforms. The first step to avoid unpleasant surprises is choose a serious and reliable bookmaker. For anyone who is new to this adventure universe and wants to enter it, it is necessary to make sure that you are dealing with a legal bookmaker. This issue is far from obvious, since only legal structures are able to ensure safe gaming modes and the absence of irremediable risks.
What exactly is a bookmaker?
To begin, it is good to define what exactly a bookmaker is. The word has Anglo-Saxon origins and literally indicates the bookmaker, that is, the person in charge of collecting bets, ranging between different types of sporting events, typically related to football and horse racing. In modern times, with the internet, countless online bookmakers have emerged, unfortunately not all of them legal.
Features and guarantees of legal bookmakers
The main guarantee of legality of a bookmaker lies in the certainty that the bets take place on platforms that own the license issued by the Customs and Monopolies Agency, previously named AAMS extension, that protects and guarantees the legality and safety of gambling in ItalyBookmakers operating without this license are to be considered illegal, and should therefore be avoided if you do not want to run serious risks, including criminal ones.
In Italy, to obtain the license it is necessary to satisfy specific requirements. Here they are listed:
- Bookmakers must be constituted as company resident in Europe and present a certain annual turnover.
- They have to to pay a sum as a guarantee to the Customs and Monopolies Agency.
- They have to present excellent reliability requirements, together with large Bank guarantees.
- They have to manage your players' data correctly, in accordance with current privacy legislation.
- They have to ensure total security in money transactions.
- They have to provide operational support around the clock, every day of the week.
Risks with illegal bookmakers
If a bookmaker is operating without a license, and therefore does not meet the requirements of the Customs and Monopolies Agency, Managers risk significant financial sanctions and imprisonment of up to three years.
But what risks do those who rely on them run?
- A bookmaker, identified by the ADM as illegal, immediately sees platform darkened, which becomes unreachable for all bettors, making it totally your accounts are inaccessible. The absence of protection makes the damage irreparable, as there is no guarantee fund for the recovery of one's credits.
- Often it is the portals themselves, to escape controls, change IP becoming unreachable to old users who are left without their credits and deprived of the possibility of appeal.
- Another danger you run into when relying on illegal bookmakers concerns your own personal data and your privacy: it is common for some platforms to make their customers' data available to other companies for commercial purposes that are often equally illegal.
- On the other hand, if a player aware of being on an illegal platform tries to change his IP address or implements systems to play anyway, this it is considered an illegal act in all respects, punishable by arrest of up to 3 months and fines of up to 516 euros.
Finally, let's mention an aspect that does not really represent a risk but rather a significant financial inconvenience: having to declare the winnings in the tax return, if one were to resort to these illegal foreign sites, one would find oneself having to pay double taxes on earnings, both for the foreign country of residence of the bookmaker we have entrusted ourselves to, and for the Italian State.
Identifying Illegal Bookmakers
Illegal bookmakers are widespread, so it is necessary to identify as many criteria as possible to identify them. A great way is to check the site for presence of the logo of the Customs and Monopolies Agency, which certifies the possibility of accessing safe gaming. This proves that the site complies with Italian and European regulations. Furthermore, sites with ADM license hanno tutti a URL ending with .it.
Finally, it is good to know that every web page of legal online bookmakers proposes the license number. Careful monitoring of these aspects will facilitate the identification of portals having the concession and authorization to operate.
In conclusion, playing on illegal platforms does not bring any advantage, on the contrary the best choice is undoubtedly to rely on certified bookmakers with ADM license, some of which are very famous in Italy (such as Betrebels betting) to have all the necessary guarantees and maximum transparency.
