TLDR The Gambling Commission published new survey data on illegal gambling website use on 5 November. 94.4% of respondents showed no sign of using an illegal gambling website. Among online gamblers, 2.5% used an illegal site in the past four weeks. Use was higher among men and younger adults, especially those aged 18 to 24. The regulator also launched an updated Illegal Gambling Data Dashboard.
The Gambling Commission has released new estimates on how many people in Great Britain use illegal gambling websites. The figures came out on 5 November. They are part of the regulator’s push to build better evidence and disrupt illegal markets.
The data comes from the Gambling Survey for Great Britain. It uses a new set of questions to judge whether a person is likely to be using an illegal site. This includes people who may not realise the site is illegal.
What the Survey Found
Most respondents showed no sign of using an illegal gambling website. The figure was 94.4% across the whole population, including people who do not gamble. The Commission described overall engagement as low and stable.
About 0.6% of respondents had used an illegal gambling website in the past four weeks. Another 0.4% had used one in the past 12 months, but not in the past four weeks.
The numbers rise when looking only at online gamblers. Among people who gambled online in the past 12 months, 2.5% had used an illegal site in the past four weeks. A further 1.5% had used one in the past year, but not in the past four weeks.
Men were more likely than women to engage with illegal gambling websites. Younger adults also showed higher use over the past 12 months. This was most common among those aged 18 to 24.
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