Spread of illegal sports gambling by minors, special attention is required
Feb 18, 2025
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Sports gambling, such as the release on similar sites that mimic Sports Toto's unique games 'Toto' and 'Proto', is all illegal. In addition, minors under the age of 19 cannot use it in any case, regardless of legal status.
Under the current National Sports Promotion Act, violations of the 'purchase restriction' which prohibits the sale of sports promotion voting rights or payment of refunds to minors will result in imprisonment for up to three years or a fine of up to 30 million won. In addition, not only illegal sports gambling operators but also those who participated could be sentenced to up to five years in prison or fined up to 50 million won, so minors need to pay special attention.
Recently, the use of illegal sports gambling by minors has emerged as a serious social problem. With the development of online and mobile environments, accessibility has increased, and minors are being exposed faster and easier than in the past through illegal sites with guaranteed anonymity. In particular, as illegal gambling advertisements through SNS and communities increase, minors often start out with curiosity or pocket money, and the seriousness of the problem is getting worse.
The problem is that it is not just a financial loss, it can even cause the risk of criminal involvement. This is because there are continuous cases in which personal information is leaked or threatened by proxy betting in the process of using illegal sports gambling sites.
Accordingly, the government and related agencies are taking various measures to strengthen crackdown on illegal sports gambling and block minors' access. However, as illegal sports gambling evolves day by day, it is pointed out that crackdown alone has limitations. For this reason, there are growing calls for further expansion of education and public relations activities to prevent gambling addiction for minors.
In this regard, an official from Sports Toto Korea said that `Illegal sports gambling is not just a game, but a criminal act that is subject to severe legal punishment.'"We will raise awareness of this, and Sports Toto Korea will continue to make efforts to prevent the inflow of illegal sports gambling by minors.' Reporter Nam Jeong-seok
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This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
