UKGC pledges to combat economic threat of Black Market

The UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) is ramping up efforts to combat unlicensed gambling, which it views as a serious threat to society and the economy.

Chief Executive Andrew Rhodes is leading this initiative as part of the Commission’s strategy to increase resources and investment to tackle illegal gambling.

Unlicensed operators, who avoid paying taxes, not only undermine the legal market but also fail to protect consumers. The UKGC’s approach includes blocking access to illegal gambling sites, shutting down payment methods, and making illegal products inaccessible. So far, the Commission has issued over 750 cease-and-desist notices and referred more than 78,000 URLs to Google and Microsoft. This has led to the removal of 50,000 links and the takedown of 255 websites.

As new gambling regulations come into effect in the UK, there’s concern that some consumers could be driven away from legal options. However, Rhodes stressed that the answer is not to avoid new regulations. “Avoiding new regulations is not the solution, especially when there are clear issues in the current regulatory framework that need to be addressed,” he said. Instead, the Commission aims to strengthen protections, particularly for vulnerable consumers who are often targeted by unlicensed operators.

Data analytics are central to the UKGC’s enforcement efforts. The Commission has published a new methodology paper aimed at identifying illegal online operators and measuring the scale of the black market.

Rhodes highlighted that this is just the beginning, stating, “Today’s methodology paper is the first step in sharing this work, and we are committed to publishing more as it develops.”

He added, “The new data will, in time, allow us to publish more metrics on unlicensed gambling. Once a fuller, more robust time series is available, we will publish our findings and outline the conclusions we have drawn.”

Understanding why consumers turn to unlicensed operators is another key focus for the Commission. Through its Consumer Voice programme, the UKGC is conducting research to explore the motivations behind these choices. The research will offer insights into pathways leading to unlicensed gambling, especially in cases where consumers may not realize they are engaging with unregulated operators. “One outcome of this research is to gain a better understanding of the right questions we can ask in consumer research, which will help supplement our data sources,” Rhodes explained.

These findings will be included in the Gambling Survey for Great Britain to improve ongoing monitoring. Full results are expected to be published by 2025.

The UKGC is also expanding its partnerships with search engines to combat illegal content. Following its successful collaboration with Google, it has now teamed up with Microsoft to remove unlicensed gambling content from platforms like Bing and Yahoo Finance. The Commission is also working with law enforcement and payment providers to disrupt illegal gambling transactions.

A new cease-and-desist process will target unauthorised prize draws and competitions, a growing concern for agencies such as HM Revenue and Customs and the National Crime Agency.

Rhodes emphasized the importance of collaboration and a data-driven approach: “We are committed to making it difficult to provide illegal gambling at scale to consumers in Great Britain.

The partnerships we’ve built with international regulators, technology partners, and search engines are already delivering results, and we’re determined to keep up this momentum.” He added, “By using data analytics to improve our enforcement efforts, we’re not just reacting to the problem, but proactively targeting illegal operators.”

The UKGC plans to continue refining its approach to better protect consumers and address the illegal gambling market in Great Britain.