Internet Gambling

The 'Perfect Storm' of Harm

Internet gambling has been described as the "perfect storm" of gambling. It brings together all of gambling's addictive power and mixes in the greatest potential for crime, corruption and economic instability.

Gambling machines addict victims much faster than other forms of wagering, earning electronic gambling machines the title of the "crack cocaine" of gambling. Internet games have the ability to provide all the sights, sounds and scenarios of traditional slot and video poker devices, and do so at the stroke of a key.

Proximity is a significant contributor to gambling addiction. In the brick and mortar world of gambling, a casino within 10 to 50 miles will double addiction rates, and sometimes more, depending upon demographics. Internet gambling provides the ultimate proximity. This ubiquitous medium permeates offices and homes, kiosks and cell phones.

Anonymity, or the ability to hide ones gambling, is also a significant problem among gamblers. On the Internet, a dark corner of the home, the privacy of an office cubicle or the portability of a laptop or handheld PDA can provide instant access to the virtual casino. Offshore casinos already offer free "children's games" to lure youth to their sites, and  display gambling promotions on those same pages.

Besides its obvious capacity for addiction, Internet gambling threatens outrageous potential for organized crime and money laundering. Given the proven inability of nations to control such Internet activities as pornography, there is no reason to believe authorities could ever control international flows of gambling money. This could, in time, cause the destabilization of economies around the world.

For more information on Internet Gambling, see:

Facts about the recently passed bill outlawing funding of illegal Internet gambling

Facts compiled by Senator Jon Kyl's office