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Report

Illegal gambling - Phase 4: Initial findings from new data on consumer engagement with illegal gambling websites

The initial findings from new data on consumer engagement with illegal gambling websites.

Published
5 November 2026

Last updated
5 November 2026 - Changes

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Contents

Statements and survey question

The Gambling Survey for Great Britain (GSGB) survey questions were developed iteratively throughout the previous phases of this research, informed by a combination of qualitative and quantitative evidence. This included focus groups, depth interviews, lived experience engagement, large-scale surveys of online gamblers, and expert workshops to identify, test, and refine indicators of consumer engagement with illegal gambling websites. The research produced 7 final statements that were assessed to be the key indicators of consumer engagement with illegal gambling websites. These statements were subsequently incorporated into a composite Illegal Gambling Index, with responses scored and aggregated to create an overall measure of consumer engagement.

Respondents who had gambled online in the past 12 months were asked if they had ever:

  • used a Virtual Private Network (VPN) specifically to access a gambling website that was not otherwise available in Great Britain 
  • placed a bet and/or played a game on a gambling website using cryptocurrency (for example, Bitcoin) 
  • placed a bet and/or played a game on a gambling website using money directly from your credit card (that can be paid off each month) 
  • placed a bet and/or played a game on a gambling website using Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) or virtual assets 
  • signed up to a gambling website because you knew you wouldn’t need to verify your age or identity 
  • cancelled a withdrawal before it reached your bank and/or wallet on a gambling website 
  • used a gambling website that you knew was not on Gamstop. 

Response options for each statement included:

  • yes, in the past 4 weeks
  • yes, in the past 12 months
  • yes, more than 12 months ago
  • no, never
  • don’t know
  • prefer not to say.

Further details on the survey questions can be found in the technical report.

An initial version of the Illegal Gambling Index contained an additional question asking respondents directly whether they had intentionally used an illegal gambling website. However, through initial analysis of the first 2 waves of the GSGB questions, it was determined that the other 7 indicators within the Index were sufficient to capture illegal gambling website users, leading to the intentionality question not being incorporated into the final Index scoring methodology6. More detail on this process can be found in the Commission modification of the Index section of the technical report.

References

6 Although not incorporated in the Index scoring methodology, this intentional question was retained on the GSGB as it will be used in the future to help the Commission differentiate between the 4 persona groups established in earlier phases of this research.

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Data collection
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