Blacklisted Casino Sites to Avoid

Before playing with any online casino, complete an online checklist. Do casino reviews report a pattern of unethical behavior from customers, such as unexplained slow payouts? How long has this online casino been in business? Which gambling commission regulates this casino? Is there any contradictory information appearing across the pages of the casino in question?

If you are suspicious of an online casino after depositing your funds, these are the most common casino scams other players report:

• Suspiciously less-than-random game events
• Fails to pay legitimate winnings
• Confiscates deposits for no reason
• Unexplained slow withdrawal processes
• Undisclosed fees or requirements for withdrawal
• Buggy software

These signs occur when the worst consequences have already happened. To avoid any of the above, check whether an online casino:

• Has its site based in licensing jurisdictions known for their leniency
• Spams customers’ inboxes
• Sends unsolicited emails highlighting bonuses that are too good to be true
• Fails to compensate advertisers
• Has unresponsive customer support

Many of these blacklisted casino sites are eventually shut down. However, the difficulty is stopping them from reappearing under another name. Even in better regulatory domains, casino “groups” withdraw and introduce new sites once gamblers grow wise to their unethical practices. To avoid getting ripped off, research any casino before playing with them.

Over the years, multiple land-based and online casino controversies have appeared in the news. Here are the biggest casino controversies, as well as the online casinos and casino groups to avoid:

• Virtual Casino Group (VCG) manages around a dozen online casinos that offer huge bonuses accompanied by rules that reportedly make it nearly impossible to withdraw. Players and advertising affiliates have described poor treatment from VCG, with dwindling customer support after players have tried to withdraw payouts.
• Teller Processing Ltd (TPL) is a payment processing service that also has a stake in online casinos. Some players reported the company stopped paying out winnings, and its customer support shut down afterwards.
• Curgam Malta Ltd Group (CMLG) operates roughly a dozen online casinos that players have reported for slow-pay/no-pay complaints, unanswered customer queries, and even unauthorized credit card charges.
• GoTo Entertainment Casinos operates dozens of online casinos that share a common backend and linked accounts. Numerous players have reported slow and non-existent payouts, shifting rules, and customer service run-arounds.
• Two directors from Everleaf Gaming Ltd were arrested for misusing nearly $1,000,000 of player funds. The Maltese Lotteries and Gaming Authority (LGA) eventually withdrew their license and shut them down in 2013.
• Casinoval.com is a brand that operates under the Affiliates Booster program. Players have repeatedly reported that the online casino does not pay out winnings, and instead leaves it on "pending" status.
• Three individuals were arrested in the Netherlands in 2013 for laundering drug money through their Netgaming Solutions Company, which operated at least seven online casinos.
• The Lucky Group runs dozens of online casino brands that players complain about regularly for non-payments and customer service run-arounds.
• Merge Gaming has been accused of covering up reported cheating and collusion ring activity on their poker tables, not to mention extremely slow payouts through customer service exercises.
• The biggest purge of all was April 15, 2011. On so-called "Black Friday", the US Government indicted nearly a dozen defendants associated with Pokerstars, Full Tilt Poker, Absolute Poker, and Ultimate Bet. The charges included money laundering and fraud. These sites subsequently banned US players from real money tables.

Online Gambling assesses every gambling site that appears on the site through a rigorous reviews process. Online casinos are measured for their security, banking, software, gameplay, and fairness to players. Learn more about how we rate online casinos, or find the best real money online casinos to play with straightaway.