GamProtect project. UK Gambling Companies may gain access to customers' financial data to protect them from unaffordable losses

Information Commissioner's Office (ICO), the UK's independent data regulator, supports the initiative that gambling companies have legal access to customers' financial data to protect gamblers from potential harm.

The decision comes in response to an alarming increase in problematic gambling behavior.

ICO states that data protection law does not stop gambling companies from conducting financial risk checks on customers, but this "must be done transparently and proportionately." ICO also supports gambling companies' plans to share information about customers identified as high-risk gambling across multiple sites.

As part of the Gambling Act review, the ICO has collaborated with the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) to develop privacy safeguards for financial risk checks.

Specifically, the UKGC plans to consult on two forms of financial risk checks.

1. Basic checks at moderate levels of spend - £125 net loss within a month or £500 within a year.

2. Enhanced checks for online gamblers incurring higher levels of spend: £1,000 net loss within 24 hours or £2,000 within 90 days.

Source: Letter to industry trade body UK Finance.

More information about the GamProtect pilot project: https://www.gamprotect.co.uk

Protecting your money (in general)

This decision, rooted in protecting consumers, raises a significant question: Is your financial data safe? Are you protecting your online transactions, purchases, and money transfers?

If not, here are some tips about what you can do:

1.    Use Secure Wi-Fi: Avoid making transactions over public Wi-Fi networks as they may not be secure. If you must use public Wi-Fi, consider using Bitdefender VPN to encrypt your data and protect sensitive information.

3.    Enable Two-Factor Authentication (2FA): 2FA adds a layer of security to your online accounts containing your credit card information.

4.    Check if your card details/ bank account information is on the Internet leaked in a breach you don't know about. Bitdefender Digital Identity Protection helps you discover all the bits of information about you that ended up on the Internet in legal/ illegal data collection or as a result of a breach. Bitdefender Digital Identity Protection scans millions of websites and monitors the underground networks to check if your information is on the Dark Web. You can see your digital footprint at a glance and follow the actionable advice provided to secure your online accounts and digital identity.

Read more about our identity protection and privacy solutions here.