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The Legal Issues That Arise When Betting Online

Online Gambling

In some countries, like the United States, online gambling is a legal activity. Others have laws against it, or have stricter regulations. In most cases, the minimum age to gamble is 18 years old, but some countries have even lower age limits. You must make sure you’re of legal age to gamble in your own country before you try it. This article will look at the legal issues that arise when betting online in your own country. Once you’ve done your research, you can play safely and legally.

While there are no studies showing that Internet gambling causes problem behavior, some Internet problem gamblers do attribute their problems to online gambling. According to one study, about half of Internet problem gamblers attribute their problems to online gambling, indicating that it is a contributing factor in their problems. Although research findings indicate a causal relationship for some Internet gamblers, they can’t rule out the possibility that a person may already have an underlying problem before starting to gamble online. Also, most studies involving Internet gambling are cross-sectional and rely on self-reporting, which has bias and reliance on the reporting of actual problem gamblers.

In the United States, the legal landscape for online gambling is murky at best. Although the Federal Wire Act restricts sports betting over “telephone-like” devices, most online gambling websites are based overseas and aren’t governed by federal laws. Nonetheless, these laws vary by state, which is why there aren’t uniform federal regulations. While some states have stricter regulations than others, it’s generally safe to gamble online.