Third Party Watchdogs
In the online casino industry, there are a few companies that have established themselves as Third Party Watchdogs. For the most part, these are well-intentioned organization whose only desire is to ensure the security and protection of online casino players. But beware that not all third party watchdogs have these same priorities.
Purpose of Third Party Watchdogs
Third party watchdogs test the software for randomness (fairness) and payout percentages. Some will also ensure that the software and data encryption technologies are absolutely secure, and monitor the payout system for timeliness.
If an online casino and its software pass each of these tests, they are issued a seal of certification. If not, they don’t receive the seal. This seal is displayed on certified online casinos, usually at the bottom of the main page, and often on every other page as well.
Another common benefit of third party watchdogs is their ability to resolve issues between the players and the operators. If an online casino player is not paid on time, if at all, they can take it up with the third party watchdog that is supposed to be regulating the site. Most third party watchdogs are able to resolve disputes when online casinos aren’t, since the casino could suffer valuable declines in public relations when the third party watchdog makes known their insubordinance .
Third Party Watchdogs – eCOGRA
One of the most common, and highly sough after certificate seals, comes from an organization known as eCOGRA, short for eCommerce Online Gaming Regulation and Assurance. eCOGRA is the most trusted third party watchdog because it covers all of the bases – Fairness, Security, Software Quality, Payout Percentages and Timely Payouts.
When you come across an online casino with the eCOGRA Seal of Approval, which looks like a long, rectangular, shiny gray button displaying the words “eCOGRA Safe & Fair”, you know that the online casino has been thoroughly tested and deemed worthy.
One of the biggest benefits of eCOGRA certified online casinos is that most of them reveal the exact payout percentages for each month of certification. Percentages are categorizes by game types – table games, slots, poker and all games (overall payouts).
To find this information, click the eCOGRA button at the online casino, then, in the new window that opens, look for a similar button marked “Payout Percentage Report”. Note that the payout percentages are normally a few months behind.
If you visit the eCOGRA web site, you’ll find that this non-profit organization supplies a complete list of all certified online casinos, as well as poker rooms and mobile casinos. Most of these online casinos are licensees of Microgaming software. Microgaming employs the services of eCOGRA to ensure all of their licensees maintain fair, honest operations, basically avoiding blemishes on its own brand name.
Other well known, reputable third party watchdogs include TST (Technical Systems Testing) and VeriSign, though neither of these offer visible payout percentage reports.
Problems with Third Party Watchdogs
The only problems with third party watchdogs is when an organization focuses more on popularity than their actual purpose. Though their intentions may have started off on the right foot, there is money to be made (non-profit or otherwise), and attention to be had.
There is a third party watchdog known as Montana (or Montana Overseas), that keeps watch over all RealTime Gaming (RTG) casinos, but it’s important to note that the organization was established, and is paid for, by RTG. It is difficult to trust a third party watchdog that earns its paychecks from the same people an online casino player is disputing. However, Montana has been known to resolve numerous disputes that RTG did not take the time to look into. Basically, RTG does not wish to handle such problems, so they hired a team that would.
Even eCOGRA has had its complaints over the years, but they all point in a single direction. eCOGRA works to resolve conflicts between players and operators, but is not willing to post its finding when they have to do with fraudulent activity on a player’s part. This actually happens quite often, which is why third party watchdogs are not just in place to protect the players, but the online casino operators as well.
While most players and operators would love for the full details to be disclosed, the fact is, revealing how eCOGRA is able to find fraudulent activity would only assist disreputable players in finding other ways to cheat the system and avoid the penetrating gaze of third party watchdogs.
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