Massachusetts Gaming Commission Shifts Focus to Underage Gambling

The Massachusetts Gaming Commission (MGC) shifted its focus towards underage gambling in its quarterly revenue meeting with operators. The group shared that they had been seeing reports of underage gambling and were growing concerned about how widespread the problem was becoming. 

"So example: I'm able to bet. My 16-year-old knows my passwords. I allow him to go in and bet — which we're being told is happening. We didn't have any proof of it, but just that it was happening — can you kind of enlighten us [of] what protocols are put into place to make sure this doesn't happen?" MGC Commissioner Brad Hill asked the operators. "And can you stop it? Because, as I said in that meeting that we had with this outside source, you know if somebody wants to cheat, they'll cheat."

The operators each shared measures they had in place to eliminate underage gambling. Representatives for each operator shared the measures currently in place. Those include geolocation software, verifying user identities with other apps they use, and photo ID requirements. Each had a program in effect to monitor and prevent the issue, which the MGC was pleased to hear. 

After the response from the operators, Hill acknowledged that he was “very comfortable at what I heard today and actually pleasantly surprised by what I heard today.” 

The MGC closed the meeting by acknowledging that there are still ways for underage players but said the focus should now be on educating parents. That includes messaging about the dangers of underage gambling along with how their kids could use their information to create dummy accounts.

DrafKings’ “Know Your Customer” Program Praised

The MGC was pleased with each representative's reports, but they noted the success of DraftKings’ “Know Your Customer” (KYC) program. The program is in place to prevent underage gambling by using a combination of tools. 

"Informing parents, I mean, listen, I can literally create an account with my mother's name today,” MGC Commissioner Jordan Maynard said. “Because I know everything about her — I know where she was married, where she graduated high school, what her birthday is, and so educating parents that there could be some dummy accounts out there that they need to watch for, watching their devices, I think it's an all-inclusive strategy. I think KYC is a piece of it."