Speaking at the launch of the campaign "Not everything you see is safe gambling," promoted by the Directorate-General for Consumer Affairs (DGC) in conjunction with the Food and Economic Security Authority (ASAE) and the Gaming Regulation and Inspection Service (SRIJ) of Turismo de Portugal, Castro Almeida appealed to the entities involved to combat illegal online gambling "efficiently, with determination and, above all, with great coordination."

Changing the online gambling regime

After a proposal from Livre to change the online gambling and betting regime was rejected in parliament by the PSD and CDS, the government official announced that the Government will approve new legislation "this summer" to "update the rules on online gambling." Classifying the phenomenon as "a plague," he mentioned the need to "combat the phenomenon" through oversight and punishment, as well as "active prevention" and "raising citizens' awareness of the dangers of illegal gambling."

"Illegal online gambling destroys many people, many families, many individuals, and it's also terrible for the economy," he pointed out.

Illegal online gambling

He also warned that the phenomenon of illegal online gambling "is growing very fast," also because "the idea of ​​impunity has been created in almost everything related to digital fraud."

"That's why I'm appealing to you. If you need to change the rules, suggest it. If changing the laws is necessary to make it easier to combat this problem, suggest it. The government is here for that," he added, addressing the campaign partners.

In the same session, the Director-General for Consumer Affairs, Jorge Seguro Sanches, explained that the campaign's objectives are "to give consumers more information about the risks of illegal online gambling," a phenomenon that jeopardises "the economic situation, but also people's lives."

Risks of illegal gambling

The National Director of the Judicial Police, Carlos Cabreiro, listed the risks of illegal online gambling, which operates through fraudulent schemes aimed at identity theft, financial fraud, and the dissemination of viruses for espionage and file-blocking, among other crimes he described as "serious."

The campaign, to be disseminated through the digital channels of the entities involved, also has the Judicial Police as a partner entity and aims to raise awareness of the risks associated with advertising illegal gambling, with a special focus on young people.

During the campaign presentation session, a cooperation protocol was also signed between the DGC and the Judicial Police in the areas of consumer rights protection, digital environment, and criminal investigation, through training, knowledge exchange and best practices, communication and dissemination, organisation of events, and sharing of documentary resources.