Safe Deposit and Withdrawal Methods

It’s impossible to 100% insulate yourself from possible financial danger unless you simply don’t gamble online. While there are few real cases of players being stolen from, the possibility of something going wrong is present with any transaction.

If you look at the news stories from the last year you can find large companies that had their customer files hacked and stolen, banks losing financial transactions and thousands of people falling for online phishing schemes.

You have to choose whether you want to take a small educated risk and enjoy the things you want to do or live like a hermit and cut yourself off from the rest of the world.

The good news is there are many things you can do to keep your financial and personal details safe while playing online.

The Number One Rule

I always stress to people who gamble online to only put at risk what you are willing to lose. This sounds like general advice for gamblers, but I am not talking about what you are willing to lose playing. I mean an amount that won’t have dire consequences to you if it was stolen.

Overall I try to be a positive person, but there are some things in life you should consider under the “worst scenario” view. Playing casino games or poker online or placing bets at online bookies are a few of these things.

If you never put more money at risk that you can afford to live without then nothing that happens while playing online will have a long term negative consequence.

The problem is that if your financial information is compromised it can put your regular banking details at risk. Fortunately there are a few methods you can use that either greatly reduce or completely eliminate the chances of your personal bank account being taken advantage of while playing online.

I’ve been gambling online for well over 10 years and have fortunately never had a large amount of money stolen. There have been a few small amounts and a few credit or debit cards that I had to cancel, but I have been lucky.

While I’ve been lucky, as I gained experience I started using most of the tips on this page. Now I know about the people I am dealing with and if something doesn’t feel right I simply don’t do business with them.

Pre-Paid Solutions

One of the simplest solutions is using a pre-paid option to make deposits. Depending on where you live, you may be able to use a pre-paid credit card or a voucher.

In some countries you can exchange cash for a voucher. Grocery and drug stores usually have these types of vouchers available.

Many places have pre-paid credit cards available including supermarkets, gas stations, and many retail stores.

Before you start looking for a pre-paid solution make sure you check with the online gambling site to see which methods they accept.

The reason using a pre-paid solution is safe is because you are using cash to buy an instrument used to make a deposit. Your personal and financial details are completely insulated from the online site where you are gambling. The only money you can possibly lose is the cash you used to buy the voucher or card.

E-Wallets

E-wallets are online accounts that operate between your bank account and the cashiers of the online gambling sites. Popular e-wallets include Paypal, Neteller and Skrill.

You hook your bank account to an e-wallet and then the e-wallet is the only account the casino, poker room, or sports book has access to.

This keeps your bank account information access limited, but a hacker or thief may still be able to gain access to your e-wallet account.

I have used e-wallet accounts and you should consider them. They usually offer the fastest way to deposit and withdraw funds with online gambling sites.

One issue is not everyone can use an e-wallet. It depends on the laws where you live.

When you combine an e-wallet with the next technique you have the best of both worlds. You have a safe way to deal with online gambling sites that also offers fast deposits and withdrawals.

An Advanced Deposit Technique for Maximum Safety

Here is a technique to handle all of your online gambling deposits and withdrawals in the safest manner possible. I have used this and I would suggest doing it before playing online.

Set up a separate bank account that you only use to gamble at online sports books, poker rooms, and casinos. You only put the money you are willing to risk in the account and never link it to any of your other bank accounts.

When you have a gambling account you don’t have to worry about anyone hacking the site where you play or any other type of fraudulent activity.

While it always sucks if you get taken advantage of, at least it won’t be for more than you have budgeted to gamble with.

I suggest not telling your bank what you are using the new account for. The laws are different in different jurisdictions around the world and they change from time to time. The bank doesn’t need to know what you are doing as long as you aren’t breaking the law.

Once you have your new bank account set up, investigate the e-wallet accounts that are available in your country. Always check with the online gambling site where you want to play to see which e-wallets they accept before signing up.

What about Credit and Debit Cards?

Most credit and debit cards have a certain level of fraud protection that comes with the account.

We also have been trained to just pull out the card and use it for any type of transaction.

Just because you use it all the time doesn’t make it safe.

The credit and debit cards that I’ve had to cancel were not because the places I used them were dishonest. It was because they were compromised by a thief or hacker. The sites informed me of the breech so I was able to handle it before anything bad happened.

As a side note, I did have a dishonest company I did business with try to charge me for items I didn’t buy one time. It was not a gambling web site. The reason I mention it here is because most of the tips listed on this page work just as well for online non-gambling transactions.

Overall, I don’t suggest using a credit or debit card for online gambling unless you have a dedicated card just for your Internet play. You can set one up just like the separate bank account method listed above.

Other Considerations

Even though I have concentrated on safe deposit and withdrawal methods for your online gambling, there are a few other things you can do to help protect yourself.

You should always make sure you only play at trustworthy online gambling sites. When you play at a trustworthy casino, poker room, or sports book you are much safer than when you randomly choose one.

In many countries online gambling establishments are licensed and regulated. Many online gambling sites are operated by large land based companies with long track records of trust and good business practices. Here are some things to look for when you look for a place to gamble online.

The first thing I look for is how long the site has been in business. While there are newer sites that are safe and older sites that aren’t, as a general rule the longer a site has been in business the safer it is to use.

Next I try to find out who is behind the site. Who owns the company, who runs the day to day operations and what kind of history do they have? You’ll find that many online gambling sites make this information hard to find. Is it hard to find because they are hiding fraudulent activity or are they hiding because of the different laws concerning online gambling around the world?

Is the gambling site licensed and regulated in a jurisdiction that I trust? I don’t rule out a site just because it is licensed in a country that isn’t well known or trustworthy. Many of the safest gambling sites are licensed by small countries. Where the site is licensed is just one small piece of the puzzle.

I always read the reviews for online casinos, sports books, and poker rooms at sites I trust. Most web sites simply put up positive reviews to get you to sign up through them so they can collect a finder’s fee. The best ones have actual reviews that help you make an informed decision about where to gamble online.

You can also do an online search to see if there are many complaints about the places you are planning to play. Even the safest and oldest online gambling establishments have some complaints about them. Some of these complaints may be legitimate and some probably aren’t. You have to be able to take everything you find in context and sometimes read between the lines.

The ones that have hundreds or thousands of complaints are the ones I cross off my list quickly.

You can also talk to other people you know about where they have had good and bad experiences. Though you can meet trustworthy people online, don’t instantly take someone’s advice who you met online.

Most online gambling sites have affiliate programs. They pay a fee when a web site refers a new player. You can often get a good idea of how reliable a site is by their track record of paying their affiliates. Do an online search to see if they have any complaints about not paying their affiliate partners in a timely manner.

Don’t get pressured into signing up for an online gambling site by huge bonus offers or limited time deals. It doesn’t matter how big the bonus is or how great the deal is if you can’t play safely. Believe me, if there is a deal today you will be able to find a deal tomorrow.

There are thousands of gambling web sites that want your business. Don’t take any chances and don’t rush into a situation before you research everything you need to make a safe decision.

Withdrawals

Taking your money back out of an online gambling establishment generally gets glossed over or treated like an afterthought. While the majority of online players keep playing until they lose everything they deposit, you need to be able to safely take your money out when you hit a nice win.

Most of the time you can have the site process your winnings using the same method you used to make a deposit. This is especially true if you use an e-wallet account.

When you use a pre-paid method, sometimes you won’t be able to take your money out using the same method.

Other options usually include a check or bank wire. The problem with a bank wire is you have to give the web site your routing number or SWIFT code and your account number. Even if they are 100% honest and trustworthy what happens if a hacker or thief gains access to their system?

There are issues with paper checks, but they represent the safest way to get your money out in most cases.

Some of the problems with paper checks are how long they take to receive and if your bank will cash them without too much hassle.

Even the fastest payouts by check usually take a couple weeks to arrive at your mailbox. They can be drawn on foreign bank accounts, which can mean your bank might hold the funds until they clear.

I once received a check drawn on a foreign bank written in a foreign language. By some small miracle I did get it cashed but I had to wait for the funds for either three or six months. It was a hassle and I never dealt with that gambling establishment again.

The situation could have been avoided if I had done my homework before dealing with them.

Conclusion

Using a little bit of common sense goes a long way toward safely gambling online. Consider setting up a separate bank account or using a pre-paid method to keep all of your casino, poker, and sports book deposits as safe as possible.