The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) recently announced that in the first quarter of 2025, it has taken blocking and enforcement actions against a large number of illegal online gambling platforms, further strengthening the crackdown on unauthorized gambling activities.
According to ACMA's quarterly report, during the period from January to March 2025 alone, the regulatory body received up to 350 public inquiries about suspected illegal gambling activities. Of these, 283 met the investigation criteria and were processed under the framework of the Interactive Gambling Act 2001.
ACMA subsequently launched 22 formal investigations into 25 suspected non-compliant gambling websites. The results showed that all investigated sites had one or more illegal activities, with a total of 33 violations recorded. The main types of violations include:
Providing prohibited interactive gambling services (20 items)
Providing regulated gambling services without a license (12 items)
Illegal publication of gambling advertisements (1 item)
In response to serious violations, ACMA has issued 12 formal warning letters to several operators, including CoinPoker, Leon Casino, and Woo Casino.
In addition to issuing warnings, ACMA also initiated a blocking procedure, submitting requests to block 61 illegal website domains to major Australian Internet Service Providers (ISPs). At the same time, these websites have also been reported to family-friendly filtering system providers to prevent minors from falling into gambling traps.
ACMA emphasized that most of these blocked sites offer online casino and slot machine gambling services but do not hold a legal license in Australia, constituting illegal operations.
ACMA reiterated in its statement that providing or promoting unlicensed gambling services within Australia is illegal, and any violators will face administrative or criminal penalties. Additionally, the public can report suspicious gambling platforms through ACMA's official website to help clean up the online environment.
The regulatory body pointed out that website blocking remains one of the most effective strategies to curb illegal online gambling platforms. According to official data, by the end of March 2025, a total of 1,178 illegal gambling websites have been blocked in Australia since November 2019.
It is worth mentioning that in early April this year, ACMA also specifically requested ISPs to block four other non-compliant platforms, including Megabet Prize, Mega Medusa, TF2Royal, and Casino Intense, which also lack legal operating qualifications and are suspected of targeting Australian players.
Through ongoing investigations and high-frequency network blocking, ACMA is employing stronger measures to maintain the compliance and safety of the Australian gambling industry. This large-scale enforcement action is seen as an important signal of stricter regulation in Australia and also sends a clear warning to global gambling operators: any attempts to circumvent regulations and illegally attract Australian users will be pursued to the fullest extent.
