Today internet criminals have devised numerous types of cutting-edge malicious software which they employ in combination with a massive variety of innovative strategies to pilfer sensitive data from the unwary.
One of the easiest ways is to try gain your confidence via links or emails reflecting details of well-known online banking and casino brands.
Basic Safety Tips to Protect Your Privacy While Playing at Online Casinos on Mobile or PC
Or fake support agents contacting you via cleverly disguised email addresses to make their credentials appear entirely legitimate. They also offer numerous reasons that on the surface appear entirely valid to dupe you into revealing your sensitive personal and financial data.
Reading this article will help you identify safe online casinos to play at and which no deposit bonuses present the best value for money options. We also highlight the most convenient, secure banking options to use when depositing and withdrawing money from your online casino account.
Online Casino Safety
Various factors determine whether an online casino is safe, secure, and trustworthy enough to deserve your business and support. Checking if the casino operates legally within your country is the first item on your agenda.
Transparency is key and all trustworthy online casinos will display their licensing details in a position where it is clearly visible and easy to find such as at the top or bottom of the homepage. So, look for their operating license and check that it is current and valid.
Registration Procedure
There are numerous reasons why online casinos require members to register before allowing them to make a deposit and start playing. However, the most important reason why registration is essential and how it affects you is safety.
It allows their industry security experts to create a fully secure online environment for you to play and relax, knowing that all aspect of your privacy and security has been taken care of while enjoying yourself at the casino.
The registration process is short, requiring you to fill in and submit just a few of your personal details. Once verified these details allow your online casino to make certain it is really you and not some stranger that stole your login details when you request a large withdrawal.
To register you will need to enter and submit the following details:
- Full birth names
- Gender
- Date of birth
- Telephone / mobile number
- Residential address
- Select preferred currency
- Create Username
- Create Password
Required Verification Documents
For your safety and security in adherence to licensing laws as well as privacy and security legislation, online casinos must verify the accuracy of the information you provided when registering.
To avoid unnecessary delays when registering you should keep clearly scanned copies of your personal documentation handy since the casino will require you to email or fax the documents to them for verification purposes.
The required verification documents include Photo ID / Passport / Driver License; Utility Bill / Bank Statement – no older 3 months.
Depending on the banking method you choose the casino may also ask you to include a copy of the front and back sides of your credit card reflecting the first four and the last six digits of the card number with the rest blanked out for security purposes.
Purpose of KYC
Know Your Customer or KYC is a set of clearly defined rules and practices that financial institutions such as banks and online casinos must adhere to across the world.
Their adherence to these rules regularly become subject to independent audit checks to ensure they comply with the legal requirements of their licensing agreements.
The casino does so by following a set of clearly defined laws known as Know Your Customer, commonly abbreviated to KYC. While enforcing the requirements to maintain many other security measures the KYC procedure mainly serves to protect you.
It allows online casinos to ensure someone else cannot fraudulently open an account at an online casino in your name. It also allows the casino to positively verify the identity of anyone requesting a withdrawal from your personal casino account.
As further proof of the trustworthiness and fair treatment of their members online casino brands will display numerous compliance certifications from internationally recognized audit firms such as eCOGRA, TST, GLI, iTech Labs, and others.
These certification seals on their homepage authenticate the casino’s adherence to a lengthy list of strictly enforced regulations governing the safety standards, security, game RNG fairness, fair policies, protection of personal privacy and data, secure banking, KYC, and numerous other factors of legitimate operators within the gambling entertainment industry.
Miscreants can easily use falsified accounts opened in your name for nefarious purposes that might be in contravention of international anti-money laundering regulations, which could see you unknowingly fall foul of the law.
During the global pandemic, greater numbers of people were by necessity driven to spend more time online and perform more online transactions than ever before. It saw a re-emergence of a few of the older methods scamsters use to trick people.
Fortunately, there are ways to add more levels of home protection if you’re worried about being caught by any of these devious means. Security software and apps not only serve to protect you against active attacks but could also warn you of potential passive attempts.
Bonus Options for New Players and Using them to Test New Sites
Bonuses are an excellent way for an online casino to increase its appeal to new players hunting for a reliable place where they can enjoy a huge variety of casino games.
There are numerous innovative bonuses that specifically aim to attract new players by making new members an offer to start playing for free and to top it all off many of the casinos are prepared to let them keep the money they derived from winning with free bonus money.
Leading online casinos make new players profitable signup welcoming packages that include free spins, no deposit bonuses, no wagering no deposit bonuses, and deposit matched bonuses, or attractive packages consisting of combinations of these. These are all great tools that players can use to test new sites and make sure they are legitimate.
The most attractive of the lot are always no deposit bonuses since they require no financial commitment from you prior to your starting to play.
No deposit bonuses and free spins allow you to assess a casino and try out their selection of games at no cost to yourself, and in addition is prepared to offer you a further deposit matched bonus once you decide to make your first deposit. This means it is always best to look for no deposit casinos that allow you to keep all that money you win.
Convenient Online Casino Banking Methods
Established, well known online casinos feature highly comprehensive ranges of banking methods that cover virtually all modern formats of online transacting. In addition, the available options will include various services from a huge number of internationally accepted banking institutions.
Available banking methods also cover several offline options if you’re wary of using e-banking methods. Each also comes with their own set of conditions pertaining to transaction speeds, limits, and fees, which allows you to select the one most suited to your liking and needs.
The legalities around the use of each payment method also differ between countries, with some jurisdictions banning the use of certain methods to fund a casino account.
Credit cards: Visa remains the most widely used and is accepted at nearly all online casinos for both deposits and withdrawals. Mastercard, American Express are also popular alternatives although depending on the country and casino players have access to a vast number of other brands.
Transactional delays for deposits via credit card is minimal, generally varying from a minute or two to no more than an hour before appearing in your casino account.
Fees on deposits are mostly nil and transaction limits will mostly depend on your personal bank account status, while withdrawal fees and times differ between casinos depending on the jurisdiction you’re in.
Debit cards: Popular brands such as Visa Electron or Maestro debit cards remain of the most convenient and widely accepted alternative payment methods for those of us who eschew the use of credit cards online.
Fees and transactional periods are on par with those imposed on credit cards, although the limits for single transactions are substantially lower.
Prepaid cards: There are a huge range of available prepaid cards from well-known brands such as NETeller, AMEX, Play+, or Visa, and most leading casinos accept these types of secure deposits. Although not quite as convenient as a credit or debit card, prepaid cards only have three real downsides.
Firstly, you need to physically go into a convenience store to obtain one, Secondly, you repeatedly have to revisit convenience stores each time you need to reload money onto it. The third issue is that you cannot use a prepaid card to make any withdrawals from online casinos at all.
However, on the upside prepaid cards do pose a much lower security risk than most other payment options since you never share any of your personal financial details with any third parties when using a prepaid card to make a deposit. Fees and transaction limits differ drastically between regions and brands, deposits are mostly instant.
eWallets: Of all online electronic payment systems over the past decade transacting via eWallets have taken the online entertainment industry by storm. Popularly used and accepted brands include NETeller, PayPal, Skrill, Trustly, and a few others.
eWallets offer players a highly convenient method of performing secure transactions for deposits and withdrawals at online casinos without divulging any of their main bank account details.
The global pandemic further enhanced their attraction to the point where virtually all online casinos now accept a wide variety of eWallet brands.
Fees are slightly higher than those on credit cards and transaction speed vary from 1 to 3 days. Similarly, transaction limits vary between regions, eWallet brands, personal account status, and individual casinos.
eCheck: Electronic checks first made their appearance around 20 years ago, but never rose to the popularity levels of eWallets. Increased security measures assisted eChecks to remain relevant and safe as a trusted method for performing larger transactions online without revealing any of your personal bank account information. eCheck fees are generally lower than on credit cards with 1 to 3-day transactional delays.
Bank Wire: Widely accepted, Bank Wire or credit transfers remain one of the most secure ways to deposit and withdraw larger sums of money into and from your casino account.
Done via your local bank or a preferred specialized cash office. Transfers are instant and subject to higher but still reasonable fees. However, not all online casinos accept Bank Wire.
Direct transfers: Accepted at most online casinos direct transfers offer users a highly convenient, secure method to make deposits and withdraw funds to and from their online casino accounts.
With the huge influx of secure indirect electronic payment systems such as eWallets its popularity waned considerably amongst online casino players.
Essentially its waning popularity is due to direct wire being the most direct way of interacting with your casino account since it links your personal bank account directly with the online casino.
You supply the casino with your bank’s details which they first have to verify and confirm before you can start transacting. Fees are lower but transactions are also slower than Bank Wire.
Cryptocurrencies: Ever since they first ruffled the feathers of the finance world virtual or cryptocurrencies initially met huge resistance and doubt amongst potential users.
However, once cryptocurrencies became more trusted their popularity rose exponentially due to their inherent capacity to deliver relatively anonymous cross-border transactions of a highly secure nature.
This allowed players to freely enjoy anonymous online gaming sessions even while they travelled through or resided in areas that forbade online gambling. An increasing number of online casinos accept one or more cryptocurrencies, and an increasing number of online casinos elect to only accept cryptocurrencies.