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Request date: 24 February 2026
This version was printed or saved on: 25 March 2026
Online version: https://www.gamblingcommission.gov.uk/about-us/freedomofinformation/enforcement-activities-against-unlicensed-gambling-operators
I am writing under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 to request information regarding the Gambling Commission's enforcement activities against unlicensed gambling operators.
Last year there were reports about a man was sentenced for operating an illegal WhatsApp-based bookmaking service, I am seeking to understand the scale and distribution of similar "non-traditional" gambling operations.
I request the following information for each calendar year from 2020 to 2026:
Investigation Volume: The total number of unlicensed/illegal gambling operations identified and subsequently investigated by the Commission.
Platform Breakdown: Of those investigations, how many were identified as operating primarily via the following methods:
Thank you for your request which has been processed under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA).
In your email you have requested the following information for each calendar year from 2020 to 2026:
Investigation Volume: The total number of unlicensed/illegal gambling operations identified and subsequently investigated by the Commission.
Platform Breakdown: Of those investigations, how many were identified as operating primarily via the following methods:
The Gambling Commission (“the Commission”) was set up by the Gambling Act 2005 (“the Act”) and is the national regulator of all commercial gambling within Great Britain, including the National Lottery, other than spread betting (section 10). As part of its principal functions, the Commission grants licences to operators and individuals under Part 5 of the Act to provide facilities for gambling to customers in Great Britain, including the provision of arcades, gaming machines, betting, lotteries, bingo, remote gambling (online, telephone), casinos and gambling software.
The Commission has, under section 28 of the Act, the power to investigate whether an offence has been committed under the Act and to commence legal proceedings in respect of such an offence. The Gambling Commission’s approach to tackling unlicensed gambling is available on our website: Blog - Unlicensed Gambling – Our approach to tackling unlicensed gambling.
In relation to part one of your request, the Impact Metrics section of the Commission website provides published and trusted figures from 2022/2023 onwards. For information dated prior to 2022/2023, and in relation to part two of your request, this information is not held in an easily searchable format and would therefore require a manual review of each record to identify the information requested.
Section 12 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA) makes provision for public authorities to refuse requests for information where the cost of dealing with them would exceed the appropriate limit, which for public authorities, such as the Commission, is set at £450. This represents the estimated cost of one person spending 18 hours in determining whether the department holds the information, locating, retrieving and extracting the information.
We estimate, in order to identify, locate and retrieve the information relating to the above request, it would take in excess of 18 hours to determine appropriate material and locate, retrieve and extract any relevant information in reference to your request.
When a public authority applies the section 12 exemption to a request, the FOIA guidance specifically states that a public authority should avoid providing any information found as a result of a search as it denies the requestor the right to express a preference as to which parts of the request they may wish to receive within the appropriate time limit. Guidance on the application of section 12 can be viewed here:
If you are able to refine your request, we may be able to narrow the number of records that we need to search.
Until we are able to process the search of the information you have requested, we are unable to ascertain if other exemptions will apply to any material identified which would also prevent disclosure.
Please note, any refined request would be processed as a new request and the 20-working day statutory time limit would apply.
In relation to part three of your request, we release details of our enforcement activity through public statements. The public statements will detail the nature of the failings by the operator and the amount of the fine or settlement. Further to this, the Commission also publishes a list of recent regulatory sanctions we have imposed on licence holders. However, public statements are only available on the Gambling Commission website for 3 years from the date of issue, more historic sanctions records are readily available on request.
If you are unhappy with the service you have received in relation to your Freedom of Information request you are entitled to an internal review of our decision. You should write to FOI Team, Gambling Commission, 4th floor, Victoria Square House, Victoria Square, Birmingham, B2 4BP or by reply to this email.
Please note, internal review requests should be made within 40 working days of the initial response. Requests made outside this timeframe will not be processed.
If you are not content with the outcome of our review, you may then apply directly to the Information Commissioner (ICO) for a decision. Generally, the ICO cannot make a decision unless you have already exhausted the review procedure provided by the Gambling Commission.
It should be noted that if you wish to raise a complaint with the ICO about the Commission’s handling of your request for information, then you are required to do so within six weeks of receiving your final response or last substantive contact with us.
The ICO can be contacted at: The Information Commissioner’s Office (opens in new tab), Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire SK9 5AF.
Information Management Team
Gambling Commission