"Know yourself and your enemy, and you will win every battle. Let me tell you about some tactics governments use to combat illegal gambling."

Recently, the Argentine regulatory authority ALEA and the gambling civil association CASCBA announced a crackdown on over 250 illegal gambling websites, hoping for cooperation from banks, payment platforms, search engines, and social media. However, the problem is that this kind of "appeal" method of crackdown is fundamentally ineffective, and the likely outcome is much ado about nothing.

Globally, the most effective country in combating illegal gambling is still China.

Card-cutting operation: Directly strangling from the payment end

The profits of the gambling industry mainly rely on payment channels. China starts directly from the root, and once the "card-cutting operation" is implemented, the payment costs surge, making many illegal platforms unsustainable.

In contrast, in Western countries, banks are mostly private institutions, and it is difficult for governments to intervene. Corruption is a serious issue, and the execution is poor, making it impossible to block the entire chain.

Internet-cutting operation: Blocking websites, leaving no way out

Illegal gambling websites are blocked as soon as they go online, with the internet information department monitoring 24 hours to ensure that illegal sites cannot survive long-term.

However, in countries like Argentina, the Philippines, and Brazil, regulatory authorities neither have the power nor the technical support. Gambling websites can continue to operate by changing their domain names, making the crackdown efficiency pitifully low.

Person-cutting operation: High-pressure legislation, direct arrests

Legislation progresses rapidly, covering fraud, gambling, and even "aiding and abetting" crimes comprehensively, directly locking down practitioners.

But in Western democratic countries, the legislative cycle is long, and law enforcement is weak, making it impossible to start combating illegal gambling. Not to mention international arrests, illegal platforms can simply move and continue operating.

Leg-cutting operation: Controlling promotional channels, making illegal gambling unsustainable

China's internet traffic is concentrated on domestic platforms, with strong government regulatory efforts. Once illegal promotions are discovered, both platforms and advertisers are severely punished, directly cutting off the traffic source for illegal gambling.

However, the internet ecosystem in Western countries is completely controlled by international giants like Google and Facebook, which themselves make money from gambling advertisements, and fundamentally will not truly cooperate with the government in crackdowns.

Why can't countries like Argentina effectively combat illegal gambling?

The government's control over banks, payment platforms, and the internet is too weak to execute efficiently.

There are many legal loopholes, long legislative cycles, serious corruption, and great difficulty in law enforcement.

Most illegal gambling platforms are located overseas, making international law enforcement extremely difficult, essentially leaving no option but to stare helplessly.

Lack of independent social platforms, with advertising and traffic controlled by international giants, allows gambling promotions to continue, leaving the government powerless.

Thus, under the Western system, hoping to combat illegal gambling through appeals and initiatives? Don't be naive; this path is doomed to fail.