Experts warn fake NC sports betting sites are ready to steal your money and identity
NORTH CAROLINA (QUEEN CITY NEWS) — North Carolina has seen 370,000 new sports betting accounts and over 5.3 million geolocation checks in the first two days of sports betting, according to a company tasked with managing that data.
GeoComply, which does geolocation checks for online sports betting to verify the locations of users, said that information shows a high interest in sports betting in the state.
According to a map shared with Queen City News, much of the concentration of activity was centered around the state’s metropolitan area, but the largest concentration appeared to be around Charlotte.
The data reflects individual accounts, not users, and each time the geolocation is triggered on the app.
“That could be when they log in, when they’re checking lines in for a while, throughout the session,” said Lindsay Slader with GeoComply.
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With sports betting now legal — and apparently, quite popular — there are renewed calls from consumer groups for vigilance to protect themselves.
The Better Business Bureau has already sent notifications of sports betting scams, where a flashy, legitimate-looking website could actually be fake.
“You enter your information, your credit card, you make a bet and you never hear from them again and never get your money back. Your identity could potentially be stolen because they have all your information, as well.”
Juliana O’Rork with the Better Business Bureau, referring to the scams
With the upcoming college basketball championships, which are expected to be a boon to sports betting in North Carolina, experts said there is the potential for scammers to find ways to make a quick buck.
The Better Business Bureau is urging people to know which apps and services are licensed to work within the state.
Additionally, state officials stress betting with licensed services within the state.
That process involves a rather rigorous compliance and safety checks with each individual operator and service — something GeoComply said they have had to go through with each state, including North Carolina, to operate.
“The difference between Google Maps on your phone and betting on regulated sites on your phone is that the geolocation…it has to be amped up on steroids, making sure people can’t spoof their location, make sure they’re not on VPNs but make sure it doesn’t ruin the customer experience,” said Slader.
GeoComply also added one interesting piece of information in the numbers released this week — there is interest in South Carolina, with thousands of accounts looking at North Carolina’s sportsbooks.
However, South Carolinians can only look at the sportsbooks, since interactive sports wagering is currently not legal in the Palmetto State.
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