Is Teen-Age Gambling a Serious Matter?
There have been concerns, mostly by parents, about online gambling. With the internet easily accessible to every home, kids nowadays have more freedom to surf the internet and do whatever they want online.
With more than a thousand casino sites to choose from, teen aged kids are bound to get in to some of these regardless of their age. Although disclaimers and terms and conditions in all online casinos state that illegal gambling is prohibited, teenagers today are so tech-savvy that they can get in no matter what.
In fact, about seventy percent of kids under the legal age of 18 were found to have gambled online at one time or another. This has caused alarm to communities, particularly in states where gambling of any sort is prohibited.
It makes one wonder how kids can get in without being controlled by these casino sites.
The conclusions that can be derived are any of the following: a.) kids know how to manipulate the internet so much so that they can give bogus info without being detected; b.) casino sites don't have fool-proof security; and c.) casinos sites let the kids get away with it because they make more money.
Especially with credit card payments as the most accepted terms of payment for any kind of transaction on the internet, teens can easily swipe their parents' credit cards and use these for online gambling.
What's even more alarming is that the studies show that most of these under-aged kids who gamble online develop a gambling problem or become pathological gamblers early on.
Gambling has always been an issue in governments and countries that there have even been heated arguments on whether to completely eradicate it or control it. Unfortunately, controlling it has not worked for the best interest of everyone.
Teen-aged gambling is a serious matter and it should be addressed as quickly as possible. You don't need a government mandate to start controlling your teenagers if you have any, from playing online gambling. Check out for internet security measures that will lock out casino sites from your child's computer should they try to get in. Better still; monitor their computer usage by keeping the computer within range of everyone in the house.
Meaning, don't keep computers in the room unless you can regularly monitor usage. Put it somewhere strategic where your child can still have a little private time researching and studying; but not too private that he can sneak in a few rounds of poker while you're not looking.