The Information · United Kingdom · The Guardian Technology
Online bookies accused of UK privacy breaches with tap of cookie banners
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Online bookmakers and casinos have been accused of widespread non-compliance of information privacy requirements, including “data surveillance” of customers, according to a study.
Key facts
- Nearly nine out of 10 (86%) licensed British gambling websites appear to be flouting the general data protection regulation (GDPR), the strict rules governing how organisations can collect, store
- Nearly a quarter (24%) of 624 gambling websites tested did not offer the option to turn off tracking software, which allows advertisers to follow users around the web and target them with marketing
- Of the websites studied, 2% offered no consent choice at all, including Dafabet, the sponsor of Celtic FC
- AWO has previously acted for the campaign group Clean Up Gambling, which raised concerns with the ICO about gambling firms’ compliance
Summary
Nearly nine out of 10 (86%) licensed British gambling websites appear to be flouting the general data protection regulation (GDPR), the strict rules governing how organisations can collect, store and process personal data, according to the research. The findings relate to the “cookie” banners that appear on a website when a user first navigates to it, asking which information they are willing to share. Britain’s data privacy regulator, the Information Commissioner’s Office, is in the midst of a multi-year project to force websites to comply with GDPR rules governing the banners. But a study by researchers at the Swansea University’s GREAT Centre found that big operators in the gambling industry appear to lag far behind.