How to Stop Unwanted Emails and Calls From Online Casinos?
Is a casino allowed to contact you without your permission? As a casino player, you might wonder about this. Non GamStop casinos sometimes send emails or text messages, especially when exploring non-GamStop casino options worldwide. But what if you don’t want this? How do you avoid it?
How Can a Casino Contact Me?
Players with accounts at multiple casinos will likely recognize this: from time to time, your inbox fills up with promotional emails from casinos. These messages usually come from online casinos where you have an account. They inform you about casino bonuses, new games, or tournaments. Non GamStop casinos also sometimes send text messages to players, although this is less common.
You might even receive a message from a casino where you never created an account. In such cases, it’s possible that two casinos share the same operator. In other cases, an online casino may have sold your personal data to other gambling sites without your consent. This brings us to the next question.
Can a Casino Send an Email or Text Message?
What non GamStop casinos are allowed to do depends on the situation. Sending an email or text message to a player without permission is prohibited. Sending messages to a player who has given permission is allowed.
When you create a casino account, you must agree to the terms and conditions. The casino will often also ask whether they may contact you about promotions and bonuses via email or text message. If you agree, they are permitted to send promotional messages. These can be useful, such as when a casino offers a temporary bonus you might want to use.
However, these messages must follow certain rules. You must always have an opt-out option, meaning the ability to stop receiving promotional messages. You can usually do this through your account settings or by using the unsubscribe link at the bottom of the email.
What if a Casino Doesn’t Follow the Rules?
Reliable casinos follow the law. This means you won’t receive unsolicited messages and will always be able to unsubscribe. Companies that ignore these rules risk fines, which can be substantial. Depending on the casino’s size, annual revenue, and the severity of the privacy violation, fines can reach several million euros.
These penalties exist to protect your personal data. Unfortunately, not all non GamStop casinos take this seriously, and a thriving trade in personal data exists.
Reselling of Personal Data
Email addresses and phone numbers are often sold to shady casinos that are willing to pay a lot for them. Once a casino obtains a database of player contact information, it can easily reach thousands—or even millions—of potential players with a single email or text message.
These messages usually target players who, despite the unsolicited contact, still find the offers tempting.
What Can I Do if a Casino Contacts Me Unsolicited?
If a casino contacts you without your permission, you can take several steps:
- If you receive an email, block the address and mark it as spam. This helps email providers filter future messages.
• If you receive a text message, block the phone number.
Whatever you do, do not click any links in the message. Don’t accept any offers, no matter how attractive they may seem. This often results in receiving even more spam.
If you sign up at an untrustworthy casino through a link, you may be scammed. It’s important to avoid this. When you play at an online casino, you want a fair chance of winning.
Prevent Unsolicited Casino Contact
Our experts recommend several ways to prevent unsolicited messages:
- Don’t share your email address or phone number unnecessarily. Spammers collect contact information through contests and “too good to be true” offers. A free iPhone in exchange for your email address? That’s guaranteed to lead to spam.
- If you don’t recognize the sender, don’t click any links. Clicking lets the sender know your contact information is active—or directs you to a fraudulent casino.
- Don’t click the unsubscribe link and don’t reply unless you actually have an account with that casino. Doing so typically results in more spam.
- Use an email address with a strong spam filter. Google (Gmail) and Microsoft (Outlook, Hotmail, and Live.com) are especially effective.
- Add a unique identifier to your Gmail address. For example, if your Gmail address is JohnJansen, emails sent to JohnJansen+ABCasino@gmail.com or JohnJansen+XYZCasino@gmail.com will all arrive in the same inbox. Gmail ignores the plus sign and anything after it. This way, you can identify who is selling your email address.
But the most important tip of all: only sign up with reputable casinos. Trusted casinos will not sell your contact information or contact you without your consent.
