Officials in South Dakota have warned that there has been a notable increase in illegal gambling campaigns posing as established land-based casinos.
South Dakota Casinos Targeted by Fraudulent Scams Online
The scam copies similar accidents in other states and Washington, DC, where online fraudsters have used the image and likeness of established casinos to convince unsuspecting locals that their favorite land-based casino has launched an online platform. However, most, if not all, of these campaigns have proven to be false.
South Dakota is home to quite a few casinos in Deadwood as well as tribal operators, and the ads claiming affiliation, offering bonuses, and asking players to register are scams that hope to extract financial and personal information, as well as money, as potential players make spur-of-the-moment decisions.
A similar warning was issued by South Dakota Commission on Gaming Executive Secretary Mark Heltzel, who cautioned residents against sharing personal and financial information with these fake platforms, as this would certainly result in serious consequences for all parties involved.
Officials have urged players who come across such advertisements to first avoid them and not forget to flag them with state officials.