As a hobby, gambling has been around since the prehistoric era. Dice made out of bone have been discovered and dated back to the Paleolithic. In other words, people have been gambling for a very long time. Therefore, it shouldn’t surprise anyone to learn how big the gambling industry is today.
What may surprise some is finding out that the iGaming industry is growing just as big, and may even overtake its predecessor in the near future. iGaming, for those who don’t know, is a term describing everything related to online casinos and online gambling.
iGaming: The General Info
As we said, iGaming encompasses any and all forms of online gambling. From casino websites, to sports betting, and including poker, bingo, keno, and much more, iGaming is an ever expanding and diverse industry. It is, therefore, no wonder, that a lot of countries, including the Netherlands, have hopped on the bandwagon.
The famous Dutch casino, Holland Casino, has expanded in the realm of online gaming. Not only that, but there are so many casino Netherlands websites, where gamblers can test out their favorite games, and enjoy quick and easy access to betting. Furthermore, the Netherlands is not the only place where iGaming is on the rise. In truth, the industry is growing worldwide.
The unbelievably quick growth of online casinos has led to a lot of misinformation among fans, detractors, and even legislators. That is why, in this article, we would like to talk about the fact and the fiction surrounding online casinos, and give readers and potential fans an explanation about the industry. Without further ado, let us delve into it.
Safety & Security
When gambling online, safety should be everybody’s top priority. The digital age has brought a lot of good, of course. However, it has also ensured that hackers and cyber criminals have better tools for doing what they do. Indeed, it is for that reason that cybercrime is on the rise in 2024. That is why, when gambling online, you need to be mindful of the myths surrounding safety and security.
- Susceptibility
A lot has been said about online casinos, and their susceptibility to hacking. One side believes that they are easy to invade, and therefore, user data is at risk, constantly. The other side are fully convinced that online casinos are impenetrable digital fortresses. So, which side is right?
Well, the truth is more complex. While it is true that every website is susceptible to a hack, registered and licensed online casinos often use the latest in cyber security to create a highly safe environment for their players. They are certainly safer than a lot of people give them credit for.
Payouts
The big reason that people gamble is that they are hoping for a payout. However, online, a lot of people believe that gambling sites don’t pay out their fair wage. Let’s find out how true that is. The claim is that online casino games are rigged to never land on a win. The falsity of this claim is self-evident. There have been recorded and documented cases of people winning at online casinos.
In fact, as recently as 2018, the record for highest online slot payout was shattered, while a player was engaged in the Mega Moolah slot, created by Microgaming. The player won $21 million from a single spin. Evidently, it is possible to get a payout at online casinos. But, if that is the case, then where does this myth come from
The way we see it, there can be two reasons for why people believe this particular falsity. One is simple and plain ignorance, or fear of the digital space. Let’s be honest, the internet is relatively new, and most people are still suspicious of it. So, they would obviously, also be afraid of matters that deal with money on the internet.
The other reason is they’ve had a bad experience with an unlicensed online casino, and assumed that they are all the same. It is true that unlicensed and unregulated casinos can be rigged, or outright scams. However, the note-worthy and reputable websites are perfectly safe, and operate within certain standards.
Sports Betting
A lot of confusion has arisen, surrounding the concept of sports betting at online casinos. The question then is, can you or can you not bet on sports at online casinos? The answer is surprisingly simple; while betting on sports at online casinos is not possible, many online casinos double as sportsbooks, where you can wager on your favorite sports.
Online bookies are incredibly popular, and in fact, many have even overtaken the land-based businesses that inspired them, in terms of revenue generation. The reason that sportsbooks are such a hit online is that they cover, not just the big names in sports, but also the relatively unknown football tournaments, and some lesser-known games you might not find at your local, land-based bookie.
So, this myth is a strange mixture of truth and fiction. While online sports betting is linked to online casinos, and you can definitely find a lot of sportsbooks connected to gambling sites, online casinos, usually, don’t have a section for sports betting. Though, sometimes, even that has been known to happen, so you might want to keep an eye out for that phenomenon.
Issues with Legality
Finally, we have to talk about the issues with legality at online casinos. A lot of people are under the misconception that online casinos are outright illegal, worldwide. That is simply not true. In fact, most countries in Europe have already legalized online gambling, to great success. The same is true for a few American states, and the Canadian province of Ontario.
Even in some countries where operating an online casino is illegal, it is still legal to play at offshore gambling websites. For those who don’t know, offshore casinos are exactly what they sound like; websites whose headquarters lie outside the country’s borders. As long as these sites are licensed by reputable gambling commissions, then they are perfectly safe to play at.
