Choosing a Safe and Reliable Online Casino
If you want to play online casino games for real money, save yourself from heartache and use only safe, reputable casino apps. The minute you use an unregulated or unlicensed product, you’re opening yourself up to the possibility of late or impartial payouts, terrible customer support, or your personal or financial data being at risk.
This review will highlight how to spot a safe, reliable online casino and the key traits of these platforms that make them a trusted choice in the online gambling world!
- Importance of Safety and Reliability
- Licensing and Regulation
- Security Measures
- Reputation and Reviews
- Payment Options and Policies
- Customer Support
- Testing and Certification
Importance of Safety and Reliability
When it comes to online gambling, choosing a safe and reliable online casino is crucial. Think about it. You’re sharing personal information with the platform and loading money into your account to gamble on slots, tabletop games, video poker, and other games. You need to use a gambling app you can trust wholeheartedly with your private data—legit online casinos accomplish this through player protection systems and fair play practices.
Player Protection
SSL encryption is the key for online casinos to protect their players’ private data and personal information. These secure, encrypted connections ensure that any financial data shared with the platform is accessible only to the player and the online casino.
This information isn’t shared with third parties for marketing purposes. Online casinos could put their licensing at risk for doing things like this. Gamblers’ private information is contained within the online casino, completely safeguarded against other players and people outside of the platform.
Fair Play
Random number generators are another critical component of online casinos that ensure a safe and fair experience. This technology is used in online slot machines and table games to simulate actions like reel spins, tossing dice, or shuffling cards. The idea is to produce random results for where the reel spins land or how the cards are arranged after they are shuffled.
Third parties enforce the use of RNGs in online casino games by conducting regular inspections of regulated online casinos to ensure they comply with fair play practices. While many people fear that casino apps are rigged against the gambler, think again. Using RNGs and oversight by a third party ensures that randomized results are a regular part of the online gambling experience.
Licensing and Regulation
Online gaming regulators license legit online casinos. They ensure that all regulated online casinos adhere to the rules and regulations that ensure fair play and security for users’ financial and private data. We’ll highlight a few examples of some regulatory authorities and what they do to enforce fair play practices and top-notch security on casino apps.
Top Regulatory Authorities
Check out the most well-known regulatory authorities for online and land-based casinos. These entities ensure that all rules and regulations are met to guarantee gamblers and bettors a top-notch experience marked by safety and fair play!
| Regulatory Authority | Details |
|---|---|
UK Gambling Commission | A part of the UK Government, the UK Gambling Commission monitors responsible gambling in Great Britain and other offshore operations, including the United States! Some of their duties include monitoring operators’ actions, taking regulatory action against those breaking the rules, discovering foul play, and issuing legal warnings or placing fines on offenders. |
Malta Gaming Authority | This body is responsible for regulatory affairs and overseeing the licensing and auditing of land-based and online casino operators. Malta licenses casino gaming operators, monitors and regulates fair play practices, guides operators through the registration process, tests games in the library for functionality, protects players’ money, and oversees financial transactions between the player and operator. |
Curacao E-Gaming Licensing Authority | Curacao licenses over 450 online gambling platforms and only charges 2% on net profits. They are one of the best licensing authorities to go through because they can cover platforms with one license for multiple types of gambling, like sports betting and casino games. |
Gibraltar Licensing and Regulatory Authority | GRA has existed since 2000 and covers over 300 operators. This regulatory authority specializes in multiple gambling avenues, including sports betting sites, online casinos, lottery promotion operators, slot machines, etc. It has top-notch protection laws and rules ideal for enforcing gambling age limits. |
Checking a Casino’s License
Follow these steps to verify that the platform is licensed and regulated correctly. Then, you can check the legitimacy of your online casino and access its licensing information.
- Locate the license information on the casino’s website. Look for the “About Us” section—it could appear along one of the main menus, but it’s most likely found in the footer menu.
- Look for the license number, a unique code that signifies the casino is properly licensed and regulated by a legitimate gambling authority.
- Once you know the regulator who oversees your online casino, visit the regulator’s website. For example, if Curacao is responsible for your gambling platform, go to their website and enter your license number.
- After entering their license number, you can view specific details about the license, such as the issuance date or current status. You can even see if the casino has had any violations or disciplinary action in the past.
- Next, you can seek auditing information. You can find this information on the same site to see if a third party like eCOGRA conducted an independent audit of the gambling platform you’re using.
- An additional step is to read online reviews from former or current users. They can provide firsthand insights into how safe and reliable the online casino you’re using is.
Security Measures
Let’s take some time to address the security protocols implemented by reliable online casinos. Encryption, two-factor authentication, and firewall protection go a long way toward securing gamblers’ private data and ensuring a safe experience so users can enjoy real-money casino games without worrying.
Encryption Technologies
The “SSL” in SSL encryption stands for secure socket layers. This technology encrypts any data between a user and a web server. Anyone who attempts to intercept this information will only see a scrambled mess of characters, which means they cannot access this private information.
Regulated online casinos use SSL Encryption technology to protect their customers’ personal and financial data and ensure it doesn’t fall into the wrong hands. Gamblers can use these platforms and know their connection is utterly secure because the information isn’t visible to anyone who could tap into it.
Two-Factor Authentication (2FA)
Online casinos also use two-factor authentication for an added layer of security. Gamblers can provide two authentication factors to prove who they are when accessing their online casino account. The second step is added after username and password entry as an extra roadblock for anyone who could hack in using the login information.
Some two-factor authentication processes involve logging into your account and sending a secret code to your mobile device that you must send back. Sometimes, you might have a few security questions you must answer after entering your login terms. It all depends on what kind of security steps your casino app offers and which you’d prefer to use.
Firewall Protection
Online casinos have another added layer of security: firewalls. These barriers help keep online casino systems secure from unauthorized access. A firewall is like a home security system. It controls incoming and outgoing internet traffic, a barrier between the casino’s internal network and the internet. The entire firewall system is based on predetermined security rules.
Protecting the casino’s network via firewall, the encrypted connection, and the users’ proactive choice to include two-factor authentication to access their account, you’re looking at a secure way to enjoy online casino games. Remember to use online casinos that are officially licensed and regulated to enjoy these top-notch security features.
Reputation and Reviews
Even if a legitimate gambling authority fully licenses an online casino as a respected jurisdiction, it still falls to each user to scope out the reputability of these platforms. The best way to determine how trustworthy these casino apps are is to read online reviews from former or current users. They are a great way to gauge each online casino’s overall reliability.
Reading Player Reviews
Websites like ConsumerAffairs, SiteJabber, or Trustpilot are good places to access customer feedback and reviews online. You can find written reviews and ratings for online casino apps and get an overall feel for how the public perceives these platforms. Each site will give these casino apps an aggregate rating, so it’s an average based on the number of reviews submitted and how good or bad they were.
Please Note:The key to interpreting some of these scores is to assume that most people posting reviews report negative experiences. Think about it. How likely are you to post feedback online following a good experience? The chances are low, right? If you had a lot of success with an online casino, you’re enjoying it and moving on. If something bad happens to you, however, there’s a higher likelihood that you’ll share this online to warn others or to vent your frustration.
Many of these websites aren’t capturing a truly accurate score because there aren’t enough positive reviews to reach a precise average. The abundance of bad reviews weighs down the score and makes the casino apps seem way worse than they really are. Plus, we’ve checked out a lot of these reviews, and many of the bad experiences resulted from customers’ misunderstandings about bonus terms and conditions, rollover requirements, etc.
Industry Awards
Do a basic search on your casino app to see if they have recently received any prestigious industry awards and recognitions. In case you’re unfamiliar with iGaming awards, here are a few of the awards that are given to the most respected organizations in the online gambling industry:
- Asian Gaming Awards
- The Baltic and Scandinavian Gaming Awards (BSG)
- Central and Eastern European Gaming Awards (CEEG)
- EGR Awards
- Global Gaming Awards (GGA)
- iGB Affiliate Awards
- International Gaming Awards (IGA)
- Malta Gaming Awards
- Southern European Gaming Awards (SEG)
- Sports Betting Community (SBC) Awards
Red Flags
Look out for these common warning signs of unreliable casinos. You can avoid choosing a bad online casino with one of our favorite operators: BetMGM, Caesars, BetRivers, FanDuel, and DraftKings.
- The casino lacks clear licensing
- The casino is licensed with unrecognizable authorities
- Bonuses or promotions offered seem too good to be true
- There are hidden terms and conditions
- You find too many negative reviews online
- The casino has a history of late or impartial payouts
- The game library has many unknown providers or companies
- There is an apparent lack of big names in the library
- The cashout process is complicated
- Customer service is unresponsive or difficult to reach
- No SSL encryption or other security measures
Payment Options and Policies
Online casino gameplay relies heavily on reliable deposit options and payout methods that let you collect your winnings quickly and securely. All regulated casino apps carry secure banking methods that let gamblers confidently move their money around. Let’s review some of the most common deposit and payment methods these platforms are offering gamblers to give an idea of how you can move your money in and out of your favorite online casino.
Deposit and Withdrawal Methods
Each of these banking options is entirely secure. Some can only be used for deposits, most notably credit cards, though there are some exceptions here and there. You must check the banking options listed in each casino app to discover which can be used for deposits, payouts, or both.
Credit Cards: Gamblers can use their credit or debit card information to deposit money into their online casino account, and, in some cases, they can use this method to collect their winnings. This is one of the more direct routes to funding your bankroll, but it’s one of the worst if you’re trying to keep your gambling budget separate from your regular money.
Online Banking: Another way to fund your gambling and collect payouts is to link your online bankroll to your online banking hub. This might be the most convenient way to fund your account, but it’s one of the worst for keeping your gambling funds and day-to-day money separated.
E-wallets: These options include well-known names like PayPal, Skrill, Venmo, and Neteller. They are independent online accounts where you can transfer your gambling money, which can be linked to your online casino. They’re easy to use and allow you to keep your gambling money away from your online banking. E-wallets are perfect for staying committed to your predetermined gambling budget.
Play+ Card: Much like e-wallets, prepaid credit cards, like the Play+ Card, help keep your funds separated online. This banking option offers instant deposits, and many online casinos allow gamblers to withdraw their winnings immediately using the Play+ Card. This makes it one of the favored options among online gamblers!
Bank or Wire Transfers: Aggressive gamblers and high-rollers will like using these transfer methods to deposit money and collect payouts because they let you move around large amounts safely and securely. The one major downside to using these options is that they take longer to process than other methods.
eChecks and Traditional Checks: eChecks are a digital version of a traditional check. The money is withdrawn electronically from the payer and deposited into the payee’s checking account through the ACH network. They can take several business days to drop into your account, but they are much quicker with payouts than the traditional paper check.
Paper checks are the slowest method for collecting your payout, and they can take upwards of two weeks to process. However, this option is still available to gamblers who’d like to get their payout using an old-school method.
Processing Times and Fees
By and large, the best online casino apps don’t charge fees on deposits or payouts. Nearly all deposit options allow you to experience immediate access to your funds, with a few exceptions. The time it takes to collect your payouts will vary wildly based on your chosen method.
Depositing Times
Looking at our top-five favorite online casinos (DraftKings, FanDuel, BetRivers, Caesars, and BetMGM), a few deposit options don’t let you access your funds right away. These include:
- The up-to-24-hour wait with online banking deposits at BetMGM and FanDuel.
- You’ll find a $10 minimum deposit for all methods at FanDuel, BetRivers, Caesars, and BetMGM.
- DraftKings has a $5 minimum on all deposit methods except for wire transfers, which are $100.
Withdrawal Times
Check out how long it takes to collect your payout at the best online casinos:
| Gambling Site | Details |
|---|---|
• PayPal—1-2 banking days | |
• Play+ Card—1-3 banking days | |
• Play+ Card—1-2 banking days | |
• PayPal— 1 banking day | |
• Visa and Mastercard—5-8 banking days |
Fraud Prevention
Another important aspect of secure payment options is the fraud prevention tools that online casinos use to ensure everything is on the up and up. These measures foster a secure and stable gambling experience for anyone using these online casinos and prevent possible scams by unsavory characters.
- ID Verification: Online casinos require users to present government-issued documents like a driver’s license, passport, or national ID card to verify their identity officially. This is a condition of signing up with any regulated online casino. It also verifies that each user is legally old enough to use the site.
- Anti-Money Laundering Tools: Many online casinos will have systems in place to detect potential money laundering operations and put a stop to them.
- Onboarding Monitoring: Also known as sign-up monitoring, this process is tied in with ID verification but also involves running a series of additional checks on each user against databases to show that they are legit.
- Log-In Monitoring: Online casinos will track and respond to any suspicious login activity attempts in real-time. This technology detects unauthorized access attempts. It protects sensitive data and is a critical aspect of cybersecurity for casino apps dedicated to keeping their users safe.
- Politically Exposed Persons List: This tool runs all AML-mandated checks and reviews all sanction, watch, and crime lists to detect possible money laundering operations that could be going on under a fake account.
- Deposit and Withdrawal Monitoring: Online casinos also have systems to monitor all financial transactions occurring on the app, including money deposits and withdrawals.
Customer Support
Nothing can reassure you quicker about a business’s legitimacy than attentive and honest customer service. Good customer support at online casinos, in particular, can go a long way toward building an atmosphere of trust and safety for users who need assistance with any problems they face during the experience. Let’s review how casino apps’ customer service centers can offer support and show their reliability.
Support Channels
Online casinos have several support channels for their gamblers’ and customers’ convenience. You can receive assistance with potential issues from the service center using contact methods best suited to your preferences—work through problems on your own or speak with someone directly. It’s up to you!
Help Center: Visit the website or mobile app’s help center to access self-help resources that allow you to troubleshoot problems independently without talking with anyone via phone or face-to-face. Here, you might find the FAQ menus with common questions and answers that are ideal for working through problems on your own.
Toll-Free Phone: Many gamblers prefer this method because it’s one of the more direct ways to contact the customer service center. The hours can vary depending on which casino app you’re using because some have limited weekday hours or aren’t available on the weekends.
Live Chat: Some live chats are face-to-face, but many are IM messaging with a human customer service representative or a chatbot. Live chat icons are usually found in the bottom right-hand corner of the online casino’s screen, and you can begin a conversation quickly. Live chat is one of the quickest ways to raise help, and it’s not typically limited by hourly restrictions in the evenings or on the weekends.
Email or Generic Contact Form: Some online casinos have a direct email address for customers to get in touch, but some have a generic contact form on the site or app where all you have to do is write out your message and hit send. In both cases, customer service usually gets back to you in 24 hours or less.
Evaluating Customer Support
The best way to evaluate the quality of a casino app’s customer service center is to read customer reviews online. You can develop a general idea of how effective the customer support systems are by reading these firsthand experiences from real people who have taken the time to use these services in the past.
Common Support Issues
If you’re interested in learning about frequently encountered issues and how they are resolved at online casinos, look at any given FAQ center to understand some common problems. For example, we looked at FanDuels’ help center and found two FAQ sections out of six that pertained to moving your money around the platform.
These are the questions a lot of people have about the FanDuel Casino:
Withdrawing with FanDuel
– What are my withdrawable winnings?
– Why can’t I withdraw my money?
– How long do withdrawals take?
– I won my bet, and my money hasn’t shown up yet
– How do I withdraw my money?
– Do I have to pay any deposit or withdrawal fees on FanDuel?
– Can I withdraw money at an in-person FanDuel Casino?
Deposit with FanDuel
– Why was my deposit declined?
– Credit Card deposit restrictions
– Deposit and withdrawal methods
– Can I deposit using one method and withdraw from FanDuel using a different one?
– What is a “non-playable balance?”
– How can I refund or cancel a deposit?
– Do I have to pay any deposit or withdrawal fees on FanDuel?
– How do I set deposit account limits?
– Can I deposit money at an in-person FanDuel Casino?
– How do I raise my state deposit limit?
Testing and Certification
Another hallmark of safe and reliable online casinos is independent testing by certification bodies, which helps ensure casino reliability. We’ll give you a heads-up on the certifications to look for and the testing agencies like eCOGRA that play a big role in the success of secure, trustworthy online casinos.
eCOGRA and Other Testing Agencies
eCOGRA specializes in online casino assurance and regulation. It has been around since 2003 and is a self-regulatory body that promotes fair gaming, access to responsible gambling resources, and player protection. eCOGRA is the main testing agency for online casinos, but there are plenty of others that perform similar functions—it all depends on which agencies these casino apps are partnered with.
Other leading testing and certification bodies include:
- BMM Testlabs
- GLI
- iTechLabs
- TriSigma
- SIQ
- QUINEL
Certifications to Look For
In addition to the testing agencies that keep online casinos accountable for fair play practices and the safety of their users, there are certifications you need to look for when choosing a safe and reliable online casino. We discussed a few of these things earlier, but we’ll touch on them again to give you a gauge for what game certifications entail.
- Return-to-Player Percentages: RTP certifications ensure that gamblers can make back a guaranteed percentage of the money they put toward their favorite online casino games. These rates are included in games like slots, blackjack, roulette, craps, and many others.
- Random Number Generators: RNG certifications ensure that the results of all online games are completely randomized. Any instances where cards must be shuffled, or slot reels must be spun involve using these RNGs for fair play purposes.
- Live Dealer Studios: Online casinos that offer live dealer games get certifications from live dealer studios. This is essentially the seal of approval that the live dealer tables are up to snuff and adhere to industry standards.
- Jurisdiction Audits: The jurisdictions where online casinos can operate will conduct periodic audits to ensure compliance with jurisdiction rules and regulations. Certifications, which indicate a safe and reliable platform, are another thing you want to look for.
Stick with Reputable Online Casinos
For the best online casino experience, choose a safe and reliable online casino. If you decide to look at apps outside of our favorites (BetMGM, Caesars, FanDuel, DraftKings, or BetRivers), be sure you look for the following factors to choose a platform you can completely trust:
- Legit licensing and official jurisdiction regulation
- Reasonable security measures (encrypted connections, two-factor authentication, and firewall protection)
- Random number generators and return-to-player percentages on all games
- Good online reviews or industry rewards
- Secure payment options
- Solid, responsive customer service
- Certifications and testing by agencies like eCOGRA
Knowledge is power. We encourage you to explore other sections of the Online Casino Guide for more detailed information and tips!