The Northern Territory regulator responsible for overseeing almost all online gambling companies in Australia has criticised a proposed national self-exclusion register, vowing to continue its own low-tech and burdensome system unless changes are made.
It raises the prospect of multiple self-exclusion registers existing at once, despite the NT regulator admitting it has not invested in its “very labour intensive and low tech” system that runs primarily from Microsoft Excel.
Most online gambling companies are registered in the Northern Territory for historical tax purposes and are regulated by the NT Racing Commission (NTRC), which recently issued fines to Betr and Bet Nation for contacting people on its self-exclusion register.
A new national register called BetStop, which is being developed by the Australian Communications and Media Authority, would allow people to ban themselves from all online gambling companies and stop receiving wagering promotions for at least three months.
But the NTRC warned BetStop has up to 72 hours to verify new customer details, potentially allowing a vulnerable person using an alias to gamble for three days before their true identity is revealed.
The NTRC has told a parliamentary inquiry into online gambling harm that the powerful national scheme, if designed correctly, would reduce gambling harm and subject all companies to the same rules.
“It is the commission’s experience that self-excluded persons who are in the grip of a gambling addiction will go to extraordinary lengths to circumvent a system designed to prevent them from opening an account and using it to gamble,” an NTRC submission said.
NTRC said gambling addicts on the self-exclusion register have previously opened new accounts by slightly changing their names and contact details.
“The commission considers that one way to mitigate these concerns is for a national agreement to require customer verification before gambling may commence, rather than the current 72 hour verification timeframe,” the NTRC submission said.
“Such a requirement would have the added benefit of assisting in the prevention of opening of accounts by persons under 18 years of age.”
The NTRC said it proposed a similar requirement in the NT but faced opposition from gambling companies, given competitors in other jurisdictions would not be required to meet the same obligations. Instead, the NTRC requires the verification process to be begin immediately after a new account is created.
“In the absence of a national agreement on verification prior to betting, the commission has reluctantly come to the view that the current self-exclusion system in the NT needs to be maintained, at least for the time being,” the NTRC submission said.
The NTRC said it had not upgraded its own system because it expected the national replacement would be launched soon after legislation enabling it passed federal parliament in 2019.
A spokesperson for communications minister Michelle Rowland said Acma had consulted with industry on the design of BetStop and conducted extensive security assessments.
“BetStop will require licensed phone and internet wagering providers to check if consumers have self-excluded before providing their services,” the spokesperson said.
“The BetStop system has been subject to extensive final testing and trialling, including with industry. This has been necessary to provide a secure and trusted protection for at-risk gamblers.”
In June 2021, Acma announced BetStop would be built and administered by Big Village Australia, a technology and data company that developed a similar register in the UK called Gamstop.
