If you are like most gamblers out there then there is more than a good chance that you have tried at least one or two online casinos. Maybe you were looking for different games. Maybe you were looking for different deposit and withdrawal methods.
Whatever the situation is, you probably noticed right away that each casino was vastly different.
One may have been better than the other. One might have offered more security than the other. There is no denying that each online casino is different and this is why it is imperative to truly understand the complexities of online gambling.
This will not only help you get the most out of your online experience, but it will ensure that you never get taken for a fool or caught up in something illegal.
Understand The Interstate Wire Act
This is really where things get tricky and one of the main reasons that there is so much confusion surrounding online gambling legality.
The first thing that you really need to know is that the Interstate Wire Act was specifically designed to make it illegal to place bets using what is known as wire communication facilities.
Until recently this included everything from making bets over the phone to making bets online. Luckily, this is no longer the case.
Over the past several years and months there have been changes made to this act. The Act has now been re-interpreted to allow some forms of online gambling. However, the Department of Justice still claims that this Act makes Internet sports gambling illegal.
How The Interstate Wire Act Affects Today’s Online Gamblers
When you look at the above information it might seem like if you are gambling online, you are gambling illegally.
Fortunately, this is not entirely the case at all.
In fact, it should be noted right away that the above-mentioned Wire Act has never been used to prosecute anyone for placing bets online. The FBI even states on its website that they are more focused on prosecuting larger-scale operations.
Keep in mind that there are also no infrastructures in place to track this sort of thing anyway.
Understand The Professional And Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA)
The PASPA is an act that was instituted in 1992 and is without a doubt the least-known of American gaming regulations. This is probably because it is an act that really has little to no impact on Americans’ everyday online gambling activities.
This act is also sometimes referred to as the Bradley Act, named after Senator Bill Bradley. The only reason that this act was created in the first place was an attempt to fix reports of game-fixing in college and pro sports.
The Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA)
The UIGEA is a more important act, as it was specifically designed with the hopes of outlawing online gambling altogether.
The act made it illegal for baking and other institutions to process online gambling payments. The theory was if you can’t deposit money online, you can’t gamble online. This act did not work and it does not mean that online gambling is illegal.