Aussie Gamblers Say No to Online Gambling: Most Choose Lifetime Ban

Thousands of Australians have signed up for BetStop, the National Self-Exclusion Register that lets them quit online gambling. The register, which launched in August this year, has almost 10,000 gamblers who have chosen to ban themselves. And most of them have gone for the nuclear option — a lifetime ban.

The self-exclusion register only applies to online gambling, and it lets users pick how long they want to be excluded, from 3 months to forever.

Most of the gamblers who signed up for BetStop are under 40 years old, according to reports. 

And in some cases, they are not the ones who applied for the register. About 1,200 applications were submitted by authorized representatives of the gamblers, such as family members or counselors. This option is available for those who have a severe gambling addiction and need help.

All gambling operators in Australia are required to promote BetStop. Moreover, since September 29th, Australia has enforced a mandatory verification process for online gamblers. These measures are aimed at reducing the harm caused by excessive gambling.