How operators use technology to prevent problem gambling

The gambling and iGaming industry has always been at the cutting edge of new technology. From the latest payment methods to the best in gameplay and design, innovation goes hand in hand with the sector.

However, recent months have seen a rise in operators and providers using technological advancements to promote a responsibility agenda as a response to increasing regulatory pressure towards fairer and safer gambling championed by the Gambling Commission.

New tools and apps are constantly being developed to help in the fight against problem gambling as the scrutiny from regulators, the media and the general mainstream public begins to intensify on the operators’ role and their responsibility in reducing gambling related harm.

In a Gambling Commission update sent to operators from the Chief Executive, Neil McArthur, in November 2020, he stated;

We expect you to be very mindful that customers may be vulnerable and experiencing financial uncertainty, whilst others may be experiencing other effects of being isolated including, for example, feelings of anxiety, loneliness or boredom.

We expect you to know your customers and step in quickly if they are showing signs that they are experiencing [problem gambling] or at risk of harm.

AI Led Technology

It’s a strong statement that reiterates a common message that has been spread around the industry over the past few years, and is the reason why so many improvements have been made.

There are many ways in which more was done for age verification, for improving affordability checks and for reducing financial harm linked to credit card deposits. At Rdentify, we are proud to be at the forefront of addressing the new guidelines to detect earlier warning signs and to interact with users to prevent problem gambling, and, more importantly, we are part of the solution to protect consumers through using our artificial intelligence powered technology.

As a socially responsible gambling solution, we enable regulated operators and gaming platforms not only to protect users and prevent gambling harm, but also, to mitigate regulatory and reputational risk.

By using Rdentify, operators are able to stand out in the industry and really prove they are market leaders when it comes to social responsibility, sustainable growth and the prevention of gambling-related harm.

Not to mention, also meeting the latest compliance regulations and recommendations, as well as reducing liability and risk.

What Are The Benefits Of AI Technology In The Gambling Industry?

The overriding benefit of using AI technology to help in the battle with problem gambling is that the tech takes away the pressure on a human, such as a customer service professional or live chat operator.

No longer is it left to one person to make a decision on the spot, but with the addition of early risk signs and triggers, vital information can be flagged up in advance, enabling operators to have fine grained intervention guidelines to encourage positive consumer behaviours.

This a key part of Rdentify, and here are some more of the benefits that our solution provides for the industry:

  1. Limit Harm from Gambling
    • Gambling harm can come in many different formats, but financial harm is perhaps the most obvious. Our technology can pick up early signs and suggest setting deposit limits and cool-off periods.
    • Behavioural harm is another important factor. Rdentify can spot when a player has changed their habits, such as longer session durations, chasing losses and playing slots at a much quicker speed.
  2. Protect Vulnerable Users
    • Our technology proactively identifies signs before gambling problems even develop and gives each user a risk rating that enables safer gambling interactions to be tailored to each user
    • Rather than waiting for the player to make the right decisions in their own interest, Rdentify will advise on when to intervene, in line with GC’s guidelines in shifting responsibility from the user to the operator
  3. Pre-empt Addiction Through User Empowerment
    • We put gambling awareness at the centre of the gambling experience by making sure players are regularly reviewed and encouraged to self assess their habits and to actively use Safer Gambling tools and resources.
  4. Support Struggling Users
    • We understand the lifecycle of gambling problems and our technology offers professional advice at an early stage, helping to support and encourage users to break any bad habits and reduce their risk rating.
  5. Comply with GC Social responsibility code provisions
    • Specifically the Consumer Interaction rules and the commission guidance to Identify – Interact – Evaluate to prevent gambling harm.
    • Increase readiness for the upcoming review of the UK Gambling Act 2005, which will ensure customer protection is at the heart of the regulations, while giving those that gamble safely the freedom to do so.

Identifying a customer’s risk of problem gambling is at the core of our solution, as it allows operators to eliminate the blind spots in current risk triggers.

It also detects the increasing risk of developing bad gambling habits much earlier than current tools and opens up a personalised approach to proactively interacting with users.

Integrating our system in the live chat tools used by the customer support teams, enables them to consistently adopt the new guidelines to act on early warning signs. As time is spent protecting users than fighting fires, customer support agents love feeling part of the solution. Integrating with the CRM system enables customer support and compliance managers to use monitoring reports, dashboards and KPIs to track and measure if interventions have a positive impact on user behaviour – another Gambling Commission guideline.

It’s for these reasons that we strongly believe that our technology is a key puzzle piece that helps operators to preempt the onset of negative behaviours and beat problem gambling, and we are proud to be leading the way in our industry.

For more information on exactly how Rdentify.com works and how it could improve your current processes, contact us today.