Betting online is a great way to place your bets in 2022. But as the popularity has increased, so have the risks. With more and more scammers trying to trick you out of your money, is online betting safe?
Read on as we consider the risks and cover some simple tips you can employ to enjoy a safe and secure online betting experience.
What are the risks of online gambling?
As with most things online, there are certain things you need to consider when betting over the internet. So what are the main risks of online gambling and what can you do to avoid getting caught out?
The main risks you need to consider are money scams and your personal and or card information being stolen.
One of the first things that come to mind when discussing the risks of online gambling are money scams.
Unfortunately, scams have become more common and sophisticated in recent years. This is across the entire E-commerce industry, not just the digital betting sector.
With more money than ever being transferred online, there’s far more opportunity for scammers to trick you out of your money.
These scams come in many different forms but they often work by getting hold of your personal details in order to steal your cash.
So how can you spot these scams and avoid getting caught out?
How to recognise scams
There are a number of telltale signs that help you recognise a scam.
Look out for emails that claim they’re from a legitimate betting company. You can find out who the real sender is by opening the from section at the top of your email. It will look something like this.
Scam emails addresses generally contain a random jumble of letters and numbers or have misspelt company names.
You should also watch out for unexpected contact. If you receive an email out of the blue for something you didn’t sign up to, it’s best to delete it straight away.
Tips to stay safe when betting online
Follow these simple guidelines and you should remain safe when betting online in 2022.
Look for secure websites
My first tip is to always check that the bookmaker you’re using is a secure and legitimate company.
Keep an eye out for the padlock in the URL of the website. This lock sign lets you know that the website is secured with SSL, a type of encryption required for financial transactions online. Here’s what you should look for.
You may also see https: in front of a URL, this means the same as the padlock.
If you don’t see either of the two signs, stay well away and certainly don’t place any deposits. All bookmakers should have a secure website.
Use strong passwords for betting accounts
Another expert tip to help you stay safe when betting online is to always use strong passwords and usernames.
Autogenerated passwords are generally the best option as they contain random letter and number combinations. To ensure you don’t get locked out of your own account, jot down your passwords down in a locked file.
Personally I use Evernote which allows you to lock certain files so no one can pry on your personal account information.
Use a credit card for your deposits
Credit cards offer far more customer protection over debit cards. Alternatively, you could also look at online services like PayPal or NETeller.
Once again, these services offer great protection and third parties aren’t able to see your bank details.
Check out this article, for more information on different payment methods you can use.
Be smart
If a deal looks too good to be true, then it probably is. Be smart, use your intuition and stay away from these scammers.
Should you keep betting accounts funded?
One of the most common questions we get asked about betting online is whether it’s a good idea to keep money in your betting accounts.
This is an interesting question which we’ll explore in this next section.
In short, there are benefits and drawbacks to keeping your betting accounts funded. Let’s check out the benefits first.
Place bets quickly
This is an important consideration for any bettor looking to make long term profits with sports betting. You may have certain scenarios where you need to place a bet very quickly.
Let’s say that you found some great value on a football match for example.
Whilst funding your betting accounts doesn’t take that long, it’s time you may not have and you may miss out on some profit.
In the long run, this is something you should avoid. You need to take as much value as possible. Having money already in your account allows you to place bets quickly.
Bookies prefer funded accounts
It’s common knowledge that online bookmakers like to restrict certain betting accounts. This is a process called gubbing.
This generally happens when you’re winning too much. However, keep your accounts funded and this is less likely to happen to you.
If we look at it from the bookies perspective, they’re wasting resources on inactive accounts that don’t have any money in. They want active bettors that keep their accounts funded.
No need to constantly make withdrawals
Yes, you’re probably going to say that making withdrawals doesn’t take that long.
But time is money and I’d rather not be wasting it continually depositing and withdrawing money from my betting accounts.
As you progress with your betting strategy, the number of bookie accounts you have open will gradually increase.
Some bettors have more than 50 different accounts open. This is going to be rather annoying when you need to withdraw money from each one individually.
Now we know what the benefits are, let’s check out the drawbacks.
It’s harder to keep track of funded accounts
Following on from my previous point about the number of bookmaker accounts you may have open, you’ll find it very difficult to keep track of which accounts have got money in and how much exactly they have.
You could solve this with a simple Excel or Google Sheets spreadsheet. But you’re going to be making a lot of changes to this especially if you place a lot of bets on a daily basis.
You’ll need a large bank balance
You also need to consider the amount of money you’ll need to keep all your betting accounts funded.
Initially, this may be fairly easy when you’re a betting beginner. However, as you progress and open more accounts your bank balance will need to increase significantly.
I guess it all depends on how much you keep in each bookmaker account.
Trusting bookmakers online security
This is the main point that some of you may be worried about. However, it’s arguably the one you should least worry about.
Keeping money in your accounts means you’ll need to trust the bookies’ security. However, over the years the bookies have looked after millions of pounds in their customers’ accounts.
Part of the reason online betting has become so popular is because of the increase in online security with regards to payments etc.
Overall, I’ll leave the ultimate decision up to you. You’ve got both sides of the argument so you can weigh up whether it’s a good idea to keep your accounts funded or not.
It’s probably best to try a certain method and see how it works for you. Everyone’s different and what works for me, may not be suited to you.
Is betting online safe?
Back to the main question of the article, is online betting safe in 2022?
In short, yes it is.
As with anything online, you need to keep an eye out for dodgy looking scams or websites that don’t have the required security features.
My best advice is to take your time, don’t rush into anything and certainly don’t transfer any money unless you’re 100% confident it’s legit.
This way you’ll be able to enjoy your online betting for a long time to come without worrying about safety.
Do you think online betting is safe? Let me know by leaving a comment below right now.