Feature article: Lotteries promoted on social media
We have seen an increasing number of instances where lotteries are being promoted on the internet by individuals who do not hold the relevant permissions to run lotteries and are promoting them particularly through Facebook pages and groups, often for private or commercial gain. We work with those sites and the payment processors to close them down.
Whilst it may seem like an easy way to raise money or to have fun on online social networks, lotteries (which includes raffles and sweepstakes) are a form of gambling and are subject to laws about how they can be run and who can run them. It is a criminal offence under the Gambling Act 2005 (opens in new tab) (“the Act”) to promote an unlawful lottery.
As well as committing a criminal offence, the promoters of such lotteries may be breaching the terms and conditions of the site, so could have their profile removed. The law sets out specific requirements for those running a lottery. It is unlawful for any lottery to sell tickets through remote means (for example, the internet) unless the entity promoting the lottery is either licensed by the Commission or holds a registration with their local licensing authority.
Lotteries in Great Britain can only be promoted for charities and other good causes. They cannot be promoted for private or commercial gain.
If anyone runs or promotes a lottery on a social network, they could be acting unlawfully and could face prosecution. If convicted, they could be fined, imprisoned or both.
Whilst many societies do legitimately advertise their lotteries on social media, most do not run the lotteries or sell tickets in this way – they generally link to their own websites to do so. Most of the lotteries selling tickets directly through social media are unlawful.
Whilst we have been engaging for some time with promoters of these lotteries, as well as Facebook, to educate and ensure the lotteries cease to operate, we are looking to engage more widely with other interested stakeholders to:
- educate the public on the rules around running lotteries; and
- engage stakeholders to work with us to prevent more of them taking place.
Research has shown that a large proportion of those running and playing these illegal lotteries are in receipt of state support and are also more likely to be in social housing.
Often, the profits from the lotteries form a considerable sum of undeclared income, and we have seen an increase in highly organised groups using lotteries to obtain funds through illegal lotteries or running lotteries without the intention of paying out prizes.
Whilst we continue to engage with the police, social media and departments such as HMRC and The Department for Work and Pensions, we are also calling for local authorities to engage with us on how to inform the public about the illegality of these lotteries, and to assist us in taking action to halt existing schemes and prevent new ones.
Further information is available on our fundraising and lotteries hub. Signposting colleagues and members of the public to this webpage is one way you can help in our aim to inform and educate people about lotteries promoted on social media.
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Last updated: 8 December 2023
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