Canada
Call for a National Strategy to Address Gambling-Related Harms in Wake of Sports Betting Boom
Recent gambling policy changes in Canada have led to increased opportunities to legally bet on sports and gamble online, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Released today, Gambling Availability and Advertising in Canada: A Call to Action looks at the impacts of legal gambling in Canada since the approval of the Safe and Regulated Sports Betting Act in 2021. The report recommends developing a pan-Canadian strategy to address gambling-related harms. This is a new report by Greo Evidence Insights (Greo) and the Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction (CCSA).
This call to action is in response to the significant increase in gambling advertising on billboards, social media, at commercial breaks during sports broadcasts and during sporting events. Increased gambling availability and advertising are expected to contribute to increased gambling in Canada, thereby posing a significant risk of harms among the general population, particularly for youth, young adults and other vulnerable populations.
The report also describes how the increased availability of gambling and in gambling advertising are of great concern because:
- The types of gambling being made available and promoted (single-event sports betting and live or in-play betting) are associated with a greater risk of harm. For example, single-event sports betting increases gambling intensity and gives an illusion of control over the outcome as people believe their knowledge of the game gives them a competitive edge.
- The volume of gambling advertisements repeatedly pairing sports with betting normalizes gambling, leading people to think of betting as an integral part of being a sports fan.
- Increased availability of gambling and in gambling advertising are happening at a time when many people in Canada are more vulnerable to problematic gambling and gambling-related harms because of the lingering health impacts of COVID-19 and a rise in the cost of living.
“Over the last few years, we have witnessed some of the most significant changes in gambling policy since the 1970s,” explained Dr. Matthew Young, Chief Research Officer at Greo, Senior Research Associate at the CCSA and Adjunct Professor at Carleton University. “We have seen a massive increase in gambling advertising and opportunities to gamble. We can no longer watch sports with our kids or go online without being subjected to an overwhelming amount of gambling advertising. Canada is at a critical moment in how it manages gambling. A national strategy or framework — similar to what we have for alcohol, tobacco and cannabis — is critical to manage the expected increased in gambling harm, especially among youth and other vulnerable people.”
The report recommends developing a national strategy that will:
- Develop national standards governing the promotion and availability of gambling;
- Manage conflicts of interest among gambling stakeholders;
- Address inadequate funding for gambling harm prevention and reduction initiatives and research;
- Monitor systematic changes in gambling-related harm, including any assessments of the social and economic costs of gambling; and
- Increase awareness of gambling-related harms among health and social service professionals and the public.
“Increased gambling among people living in Canada will undoubtebly result in increased harms and therefore increased societal costs. These include healthcare costs, criminal-justice costs, child welfare costs, increased unemployment and lost productivity costs because of gambling-related suicide,” says Dr. Pam Kent, Director of Research and Emerging Trends at CCSA. “We need to think about our approach and ensure that it considers not only short-term government revenue and economic activity but also the longer-term societal costs. That’s why we need a national strategy.”
Canada
Suspected Digital Fraud Coming from Canada Up Nearly 11% Since H1 2023, Reveals New TransUnion Analysis
In the first half (H1) of 2024, Canada saw a significant increase in suspected Digital Fraud attempts, with nearly 5.74% of all attempted digital transactions where the consumer was located in Canada involving suspected Digital Fraud, revealed a new TransUnion® (NYSE: TRU) analysis. This is nearly an 11% year-over-year (YoY) rate increase from H1 2023, and TransUnion also documented an 11% increase in the volume of suspected Digital Fraud from Canada during this period, despite a less than a one percent (0.7%) YoY increase in the volume of transactions.
According to a recent TransUnion survey,1 more than half (54%) of Canadians said they were recently targeted by email, phone call or text message fraud attempts. Phishing was the most common scheme type (45%), followed by smishing (42%) and vishing (39%).
The increasing use of digital transactions, combined with rising suspected Digital Fraud attempts are also impacting businesses as they potentially face revenue losses and increased operational costs due to fraud. According to a TransUnion business survey for the H2 2024 Update to the State of Omnichannel Fraud report, 200 Canadian business leaders said their companies lost approximately 6% of equivalent revenue – representing $78 billion – over the past year due to fraud. The most prominent causes of fraud loss cited by them were:
- Scam/Authorized fraud (31%): Dishonest scheme intended to trick a person into giving up something of value (e.g., account access, money, information)
- Account takeover (19%): Unauthorized individuals taking over someone’s online account (e.g., bank, social media, email) without their permission
- Synthetic identity fraud (18%): Use of a combination of personal information to fabricate a person or entity to commit a dishonest act for financial or personal gain
TransUnion also found that suspected Digital Fraud attempts – where the consumer was transacting in Canada and targeted businesses globally – increased on average by 10.5% YoY in H1 2024 compared to H1 2023 and impacted all industries.
Top Three Industries Globally with Highest Rate of Suspected Digital Fraud Attempts Coming from Canada in H1 2024
- Gambling (online sports betting, poker, etc.) – 9.6%
- Retail – 9.2%
- Government – 7.7%
Top Three Industries Globally with Highest YoY Increase (H1 2024 vs H1 2023) in the Rate of Suspected Digital Fraud Attempts Coming from Canada
- Logistics – 172.9%
- Gambling – 79.3%
- Video gaming – 67.8%
“Protecting customers and their businesses from fraud is essential to enabling safe and tailored consumer experiences. These findings reveal that despite the good-faith efforts that are being undertaken by companies to identify and prevent fraud to date, fraudsters continue to evolve and it’s vital that fraud prevention methods keep up with the changing times,” said Patrick Boudreau, head of identity management and fraud solutions at TransUnion Canada.
“Businesses that aren’t already doing so should ensure that they are taking advantage of fraud prevention technologies such as identity verification, IP intelligence, device reputation and synthetic identity detection as critical components of their fraud prevention programs,” he added.
CPL first to benefit from CA$300,000 education fund commitment by IBIA’s regulated sports betting operators
Canadian Premier League (CPL) soccer teams have successfully completed a sports betting integrity player education program. Designed by the International Betting Integrity Association (IBIA) using its 3R’s training model, the program has utilised a combination of dedicated in-person training and online resources, with sessions delivered by the Professional Footballers’ Association Canada (PFA Canada) through its Protecting the Integrity of the Game workshops.
In total, nearly 200 players have been trained by the IBIA/PFA Canada partnership at all eight CPL teams through the program, which started in Ontario and finished in Alberta, also covering teams in Nova Scotia, Manitoba and British Colombia. It concludes the first part of a two-year player education agreement between IBIA and PFA Canada.
Marco Carducci, Cavalry FC & President of PFA Canada, said: “The IBIA sports betting integrity training, in partnership with PFA Canada, was an incredibly beneficial experience for our players. Effective and easy-to-understand, it made clear what professional athletes need to know about sports betting integrity and how to report attempted corruption. We are grateful for IBIA’s support to help safeguard the integrity of the game and to protect and educate our players.”
In addition to highlighting the potential threats from sports betting related match-fixing, the program educated players on rules and sanctions, the scale and accuracy of technology enabled sports integrity monitoring, and how to report criminals and corrupters using the red button app.
Khalid Ali, CEO of IBIA said: “We take our responsibility to protect regulated sports betting markets, sports and athletes seriously. Decades of experience has shown that a combination of efficient regulation, education and collaboration are essential to safeguarding the sports integrity ecosystem. We are delighted that the PFA Canada education program has been so successful and look forward to year two of the project.”
Dan Kruk, Executive Director, PFA Canada, said: “Through our work with IBIA, nearly 200 Canadian Premier League players attended PFA Canada’s Protecting the Integrity of the Game workshop this season. As a result, stakeholders can be confident our members know their obligations regarding gambling and match-fixing in their sport, how to recognize an approach to fix a match, and crucially, their duty to report any person attempting to manipulate a match.”
The program is the first to be delivered from a CA$300,000 three-year fund – invested by IBIA and its members bet365, Betway and FanDuel – from which Canadian sports and athletes can receive free face-to-face integrity education designed to protect Canadian sports from the potential threat of match manipulation and corruption.
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“We are glad to meet our new partner RoyalGame, and looking forward to bringing the maximum of use and value to our community,” – said Aleksandra Drigo, Sales Director at CasinoCanada. “This partnership perfectly reflects our dedication to highlighting the best in the gaming industry while offering our audience valuable insights and chances to experience top-notch gaming. We hope for a productive and long-term partnership!”
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The partnership is now live, featuring RoyalGame reviews and exclusive offers on the CasinoCanada website. This collaboration is set to deliver even more thrilling updates, exclusive content, and personalized promotions for the Canadian gambling community.
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