Dutch regulator detects error in self-exclusion system
The Kansspelautoriteit has told licensed operators to check their customer bases after identifying the glitch.
The Netherlands.- The Dutch gaming regulator, the Kansspelautoriteit, has asked licensed gaming operators to run checks on their customer bases to make sure that no players are registered with the country’s Cruks self-exclusion program.
It has detected an error that allowed some players that had signed up to the system to access online gambling.
The regulator said operators should check players who signed up between October 2 and 20, which were the first three weeks of the operations for the new regulated online gambling market.
Players who sign up to the Cruks self-exclusion system shouldn’t be able to register for new gaming accounts with licensed operators or access regulated online gambling, but the KSA detected that an error appears to have allowed players to open accounts in that initial period.
The KSA says the error may have been caused if customers made a mistake when entering their citizen service number (BSN), name or date of birth. As such, the regulator says operators should consult Cruks to make sure the correct information is inputted and that Cruks-registered players are blocked from accessing gaming.
The Cruks system has since been updated to use automatic verification from the Netherland’s Citizen Service Number Management Facility in order to flag any mistakes when customers input their data.
A problem with the Cruks system at the start of November resulted in the launch of regulated online gambling being held up by a day, while Cruks was not fixed until October 4.
The minister for legal protection, Sander Dekker, said the problem had arisen because the system had not been tested with real BSN numbers.
The KSA has since appointed three external advisors to help supervise Cruks. Bas Brons, Mieke Hoste and Marcel Marijnissen will now provide advice and oversight on the system.
Earlier this week, the KSA revealed the Netherlands’ new safer gambling tagline, which all operators must now use.
The regulator has also issued its first sanction against one of the Netherlands’ new licensed operators. It related to a “misleading” ad that was not signalled as being related to gambling.
