Online gambling is everywhere. So are the risks
By CORA LEWIS NEW YORK AP Online betting is more accessible than ever with of U S adults saying they bet on professional or college sports online either frequently or occasionally according to a February poll by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Populace Affairs Research It s also in the news with a growing list of sports betting scandals making headlines Related Articles Starbucks workers kick off -store US strike on company s busy Red Cup Day Only in renter households in Boston-area can afford starter home document finds Penny comes to naught Federal Reserve authorities oppose an interest rate cut in December A little happy cash Trio of Bob Ross paintings sell for more than K Inhabitants physical condition advocates and personal finance advisers say it s critical to know the risks if you re going to gamble online Gambling and responsibly seem to be oxymoronic because if you re gambling it s all about pitfall declared Caleb Silver editor in chief of personal finance site Investopedia But people still do it Online gambling and sports betting are only becoming more popular Since the Supreme Court struck down a ban on sports betting in states and Washington D C have legalized gambling according to the American Gaming Association For those new to online gambling it can be helpful to set limits in advance on how much you re willing to lose and how much time you re willing to spend A large number of of the platforms and apps that offer gambling such as FanDuel and DraftKings include optional safeguards to limit time or losses Other apps can block access to the platforms for set amounts of time Here s what to know Online gambling can be riskier than gambling in person The expected losses of digital betting can occur more fast than in a physical casino according to Heather Eshleman director of operations at the Maryland Center for Excellence on Difficulty Gambling since people can bet so much so easily and expeditiously on the internet or apps with less friction The new prevalence of prediction markets such as PredictIt and Kalshi has also created new opportunities to place wagers online on everything from vote outcomes to celebrity news to the weather How to tell if you have a difficulty with online gambling According to inhabitants physical condition advocates the biggest warning sign of a challenge is if you re devoting time to online betting that s taking away from other things in your life especially your relationships with friends family and work If you re spending money on gambling that could instead go towards unmet basic demands that s also a warning sign We encourage people to only use money they would use for fun and entertainment not money that should be used to pay the mortgage or the rent or to pay for food stated Eshleman Silver echoed this You have to know before you do it how much you can afford to lose he commented What is your tap out point Those rules have to be firmly established Avenues to limit online gambling Preponderance sports betting platforms offer responsible gambling tools according to Eshleman You can set limits on time money deposits wins and losses she explained The goal is to set those limits before you start because if you don t set them in advance they re not really going to work for you Once you re into the excitement of it you re not going to stop and use those tools Eshleman recommends apps such as GambBan and BetBlocker which limit access to gambling sites externally She also directs those who suspect they may have a concern to use the - -GAMBLER hotline or contact Gamblers Anonymous Know the risks and downsides Silver the head of Investopedia announced he started adding definitions of online betting and gambling terms to the personal finance site when he saw an increasingly closer connection between sports betting day trading options trading and cryptocurrency trading He encourages those who are interested in digital betting to make sure they know what they re getting into Before anyone even gets an online gambling account they should be required to know the fundamental terms and rules about the way sports betting works he noted What s the money line or parlay How do odds work What is the maximum I could lose on this bet The other thing to do is to play with no expectation of a return he reported The likelihood is that you will lose So if you re willing to lose how much are you willing to lose Cory Fox senior vice president of citizens plan and sustainability at FanDuel who handles the site s responsible gambling initiatives compares using the safeguards to wearing a seatbelt when driving in a car and announced FanDuel is committed to setting standards for being a responsible operator in the online gambling space Lori Kalani chief responsible gaming officer at DraftKings announced the site is committed to the same goal and compared using the limit-setting tools to taking Ubers instead of driving on a night when you know you ll be drinking Fox added that responsible gambling tools are vital to help allow FanDuel to maintain its social license He stated that it s in the interest of the site to make sure its users can be on the site and play for a long time to come Make sure it s not a coping mechanism If you re taking care of your mental robustness you re less likely to have a predicament with gambling Eshleman noted Rather than turning to the thrill of placing online bets Eshleman encourages people to find positive solutions to cope with stress listening to music taking walks getting more sleep and exercise and spending more time socializing Social gambling is safer than hidden private gambling she reported If you re doing it alone that s a red flag that it s not an activity that s healthy for you revealed Eshleman It all ties in to our basic wellness I think if people focus on wellness it will prevent a lot of gambling The Associated Press receives encouragement from the Charles Schwab Foundation for educational and explanatory reporting to improve financial literacy The independent foundation is separate from Charles Schwab and Co Inc The AP is solely responsible for its journalism
