If you are a regular to online gambling then you are probably familiar with eCOGRA, the eCommerce and Online Gaming Regulation and Assurance. eCOGRA is a nonprofit organization that regulates online gambling operators throughout the globe. Their goal is to ensure the safety of every player who plays at online casinos, poker rooms and bookmakers by inspecting software, looking at payout records, investigating disputes, and certifying sites that pass their inspection as safe and fair.

Throughout the online gambling community, eCOGRA is one of the most trusted names in the business. For most, if an online gambling website has the eCOGRA Safe & Fair seal of approval, no further questioning is needed. If eCOGRA says a website is safe, it must be.

Now the regulator is being honored by an organization that deals with all internet business, rather than just online gambling. The Internet Business Law Services (IBLS) recently published an article detailing the ways eCOGRA is brining credibility and respectability to the business of online gambling.

The IBLS is an organization that aims to educate the world about global laws and regulations as they relate to online businesses. In the article, the IBLS pointed out that eCOGRA tests websites to make sure the software provides fair games, the software is encrypted in a way that makes personal information safe, the website quickly pays customers and resolves problems or questions in a timely manner. Most of all, though, they focused on eCOGRA’s position as an arbitrator for disputes between customers and casinos that cannot be resolved directly. Because of their influence, eCOGRA-approved online casinos receive 1/6 the complaints of online casinos in general. When disputes do arise, eCOGRA resolves them in an impartial manner and the casino is bound to their decision.

Another area of praise was eCOGRA’s Total Gaming Transaction Review (TGTR), which is a policy in which the regulator constantly analyzes and tests their member casinos, rather than only performing scheduled inspections.

Thanks to eCOGRA and other regulators like them, the IBLS states, online gambling is considered safer than ever. The added legitimacy brought by the regulator could also be playing a role in the recent trend of governments removing bans on online gambling or overseas online casinos.

Here at Gambling Review, we always urge you to gamble responsibly. I have said more times than I can count that you should never gamble money that you can’t afford to lose. Perhaps I should be more specific. That does not mean you should steal money from other people to gamble with. That’s exactly what a slimeball insurance broker named Daniel Trolaro did, according to authorities.

Trolaro used to work as a insurance broker for Prudential Insurance Company of America. Aside from his day job, he enjoys playing games at online casinos, but figured he would enjoy them a lot more if he could somehow spend someone else’s money instead of his own. The genius then decided to defraud nine of his clients, stealing approximately $1.9 million, and use that money at the online casinos.

A New Jersey grand jury indicted Trolaro on one count of first-degree financial facilitation of criminal activity – in this case, money laundering, eight counts of second-degree theft by failure to make required disposition of property, and two counts of third-degree theft by failure to make required disposition of property.

According to the indictment, Trolaro bilked nine of his clients out of sums ranging from $46,000 to $910,000 from June 2008 until February of this year. At that time, an internal investigation by Prudential uncovered his wrongdoing and Trolaro was fired. Prudential then referred the matter to state authorities. According to a Prudential spokesman, Trolaro “misappropriated multiple clients’ funds withdrawn from their checking accounts, savings accounts, annuity contracts and/or brokerage accounts for his own benefit and borrowed money from several clients without firm approval.”

The good news is that I haven’t heard anyone use the “gambling addiction” excuse yet. “Oh, he has a gambling problem. That’s why he had to steal from his clients!” Though there are people with gambling problems, more often than not it’s simply a convenient excuse. In this case, like in many, greed, stupidity and selfishness seemed to be the largest factors at play – not gambling addiction.

It hurts the most when someone you care about disappoints you. This time it’s Israel. The Middle Eastern nation is blocking access to online gambling providers from overseas. It seems that online gambling is illegal in Israel and the country is protecting its citizens from themselves.

I would expect such a thing in Saudi Arabia, Iran or Syria. Israel, however, prides itself on being a bastion of freedom in the Middle East. They pride themselves on being a symbol of Western civilization, technological advances and liberty. For the most part, this is true. The people of Israel, regardless of race, religion and socioeconomic status, live mostly free from oppression and government control. Like the United States, though, the government has grown over time while spending more and more money, putting the nation in the red. Facing tough economic times, the country needs extra revenue now more than ever, so this would be a good time to legalize online gambling and tax it, but the country is going in the opposite direction.

Last month, Israeli police began visiting the internet service providers (ISPs) in the country, brandishing orders to block access to overseas online gambling websites. The police handed over a list of blacklisted websites, including their IP (Internet protocol) addresses. The ISPs are ordered to block those IP addresses to prevent Israeli citizens from being able to access online gambling sites.

There are several problems with this. First of all, though Israel has every right to enforce their own laws, I am against laws that ban online gambling in the name of protecting the people. Let the people protect themselves. Secondly, using an IP address to block websites is not very effective, since the online casino owners can simply start a new website with a different IP address. People smarter than me can also find ways of faking or cloning IP addresses. Some also say that the law the police are using applies only to brick and mortar casinos, not online casinos, and therefore the government is overstepping their authority. Since I’m not familiar with Israeli law, I don’t know if that’s the case.

In any case, most ISPs are cooperating fully with the orders, though some plan to contest the orders in court. It will be interesting to see how this plays out. Israel isn’t the only Western or Western-influenced country to attempt to censor the Internet by blocking certain websites. Australia, France and Norway come to mind.

Several months ago, Harrah’s Entertainment became the first American land-based casino to launch an online gambling website. Harrah’s online casinos are based overseas and do not currently accept players from the United States. However, they are now for the first time advertising to U.S. players.

Harrah’s, sponsor of the World Series of Poker, has begun advertising for their online casinos on their WSOP website. Players cannot gamble for real money on the WSOP.com website. Instead, the online poker website can be used as a tutorial to learn the game. Visitors play poker using chips of fake money. The World Series of Poker website has links to Facebook apps, iPhone apps and online casinos. In those online casinos, unlike the other options, players can gamble using real money.

Right now, American customers cannot play for real money at the online casino, but Harrah’s is hoping it will be an option in the near future. The casino company may be thinking that UIGEA will be repealed soon, since the Barney Frank/Ron Paul online gambling bill (Internet Gambling Regulation, Consumer Protection and Enforcement Act) has passed the House Financial Services Committee. However, as I have pointed out, there are numerous obstacles still in the way of that bill becoming a law. Many in the online gambling industry are growing pessimistic of its chances.

Though I doubt there is anything illegal in advertising for their real-money online casinos in the United States, you can expect Harrah’s to get some heat from the government. The Nevada Gaming Control Board is already looking into their online casino deal and determining whether it is proper. By advertising online casinos in the United States for the first time, the casino will bring itself under further scrutiny, possibly by the federal government this time.

Poland’s July 4 presidential runoff may decide the fate of online gambling in the nation for the near future. I liked the late President Lech Kaczynski, mostly because of his extreme opposition to communism, and like many people, was saddened when he, his wife, and top ranking delegates died in the April 10 plane crash. However, it is no secret that President Kaczynski, despite his other virtues, was no friend of online gambling.

President Kaczynski passed strict gambling laws, including restricting all forms of gambling to casinos. He also banned online gambling in the country and attempted to block Polish access to overseas online casinos. Online gamblers then had few options in Poland.

Though President Kaczynski’s death was a tragedy, proponents of online gambling hope that something good will come out of it. The late president’s twin brother, Jaroslaw Kaczynski, is also a member of the Prawo i Sprawiedliwosc party and, if elected, plans to continue most of the policies of his brother. However, he is trailing in the polls to his runoff opponent, Bronislaw Komorowski. The current acting-president, Komorowski is a member of the Tlatforma Obywatelska party, which is also a conservative party, like the Prawo i Sprawiedliwosc, but is closer to the center and tends to be more accepting of gambling.

Though I have not heard Komorowski speak specifically on the subject of online gambling, many believe that he favors regulating and taxing the industry, making it easier for Polish citizens to access online casinos and possibly safer as well. The good news for Poland is that both candidates to replace the late Kaczynski are good options overall (which is the opposite of America’s 2008 choices). For online gambling proponents, though, a Komorowski win, which seems likely, has a better outlook for their pastime.

Almost every online casino offers some type of welcome bonus to new players. The money gives players something to wager with right away. It usually comes in the form of a match bonus, where a certain percentage of the player’s deposit it matched by the casino.

Captain Cooks Casino has an interesting take on the welcome bonus, though. In their unique no-deposit welcome bonus, players are given $500 and 60 minutes to make as much money as they can. No deposit is necessary. It’s as simple as that.

Here’s how it works. As soon as you sign up for a real-money account at Captain Cooks and click the “play now” button associated with the $500 welcome bonus, a timer starts counting down from 60 minutes. You are given $500 to wager with and during that hour, you try to make as much money as you can. Any money you make you get to keep. Any money you lose doesn’t matter, because it comes from the free $500, rather than your own money. This promotion is separate from normal pay, so you don’t get to carry over any of the unused $500.

There are, as always, a couple stipulations. First, you must wager at least 20 times during the 60 minute period in order to keep your winnings. That shouldn’t be a problem. The other one is that before your winnings from this promotion can be transferred to your real-money account and withdrawn, you need to purchase at least $50 in your real-money account.

This unique welcome bonus combines your favorite games with the excitement of a timed tournament. It’s kind of like those game shows where players run through the supermarket, filling their carts with stuff that they will get to keep at the end, once the time runs out.

To take part in the $500 welcome bonus, visit Captain Cooks Casino.

On Tuesday, France opened up its online gambling market to foreign companies. Previously they banned online casinos from overseas and only allowed domestic casinos to get business from French customers. This, however, was in violation of European Union rules, which set up free trade agreements between EU member nations. After defying the rules, this week France gave in.

Operating an online casino in the French market isn’t easy, though. Their new online gambling laws are very strict and have rules for licensing that many call excessive and some even call “Draconian.” So far, approximately 35 online casino operators have applied for the licensed in France, with the French issuing 17 licenses to the 11 operators. The other 24 online casinos are still waiting for word from the French.

The new French online gambling legislation established a regulatory authority called the ARJEL, which is an acronym that makes sense in France. ARJEL can only give out 30 licenses and a separate license needs to be given for each type of gambling operation, which is why some online casino have more than one. With 17 of the 30 licenses already given out, there are only 13 still up for grabs.

There are a few big-name online gambling companies still waiting for licenses, such as Microgaming, PartyGaming and PokerStars. Other online gambling companies have pulled out of the French market entirely, meaning they will no longer accept bets from French customers. Some big names in that group include Betfair, Spin Palace and Ladbrokes. Those companies say that the rules and restrictions by the French government make it an unsuitable market for turning a profit.

Once the French decided to open the online gambling market, they hurried to get licenses handed out in time for the World Cup, which is the most popular sporting event in the world. Billions of dollars will be bet on the Cup over the next month, so the French want in on the money.

Uh oh. All of this talk about online gambling has made the regulators in Nevada cranky. The Nevada Gaming Control Board is now telling licensed land-based casinos not to become involved in online gambling, at least for now.

Many land-based casino companies are believed to be talking with online casino businesses in an attempt to expand their reach in the gambling market. One such casino, Harrah’s Entertainment, has already opened its own online casino, though that casino does not currently accept American customers. If UIGEA is repealed or if the state of Nevada legalizes online gambling, that could change.

In the meantime, the NGCB is issuing a stern warning. Board member Randall Sayre called deals between licensed land-based casinos and unlicensed online casinos “inconsistent with the Nevada Gaming Control Act.” Well, he might be right. If there’s one thing that government regulators are knowledgeable on, it’s control.

He went on to say that such business relationships are not sound from “a state and federal perspective.” He says that even though there is no federal ban of online gambling. So much for that knowledgeable thing I was talking about. Sayre stated that the Nevada Gaming Control Board is currently investigating already established links between land-based casinos and online gambling companies.

Sayre and the rest of the folks at the NGCB seem to think that the industry can only be safe if it’s being regulated by the government. Certainly history has shown that the heavily regulated oil and banking industries have become much more secure since the government got involved. I mean, it’s not like we’ve had any recent crises with either of those sectors, right?

The truth is that there are already plenty of safe online casinos for USA players that are monitored, regulated and approved as safe by independent (non-government) online gambling authorities. Playing on those online casinos is also cheaper because they don’t pass on the cost of government licensing fees, taxes and the high employee wages and benefits required by the unions. If the NGCB really wants what’s best for the consumers, they should back off and let the casinos do their thing.

Japanese people don’t mind a little risk – I mean, they invented kamikaze, sushi and karaoke – and they love technology, so it only makes sense that they would be into online gambling. A recent poll conducted during the Global Gaming Expo Asia stated just that.

According to the poll, online gambling in Asia is becoming more popular, especially in Japan. In fact, Asia’s total revenue from gambling increased 95% from this time last year. It is now a $2.1 billion industry and still growing. China’s authoritarian communist government is unlikely to legalize online gambling in the mainland, so smaller countries like Japan will be likely to play a part in any online gambling explosion.

It is not known exactly how much money is gambled online by Japanese citizens, because that activity is not technically legal, but it is a safe bet that the nation is losing out on a lot of tax money by not legalizing and taxing it. In fact, most forms of gambling are illegal in Japan, though the gambling laws are mostly unenforced, to the point that Japan is second in the world in the number of gambling machines – machines that by letter of the law are not allowed to be used. Since Japan doesn’t seem serious about their gambling ban, the best thing would be to legalize it and reap the benefits of what their citizens are doing already.

Though it’s hard to know how accurate the number is, many estimates put the number of Japanese citizens who regularly visit online casinos at 10 million. A legalization  and regulation of Japanese-owned online casinos would only improve upon that number.

The Irish government is fed up with losing tax revenue to offshore online casinos. Online gambling is legal and regulated in Ireland, but there are plenty of Irish citizens who visit and play at online casinos based in other countries. Ireland wants a cut of that money.

Last week, Irish Taoiseach Brian Cowen announced a plan to begin taxing online gambling companies that access the Irish market. If his bill is passed, online casinos, bookmakers and any other internet or telephone betting companies would have to obtain a license from Ireland in order to do business with Irish customers.

It sounds like a good idea. If a company is going to do business with people in your country, why shouldn’t they have to be taxed like domestic countries do? However, there is a problem with it. For one thing, there is no law preventing Irish citizens from gambling at online casinos based overseas that do not have the required license. Also, there is no way for the Irish government to prevent their citizens from playing at an offshore online casino that they find via the internet (such as by doing a Google search). They could only prevent that if they decided to act like China and take authoritarian control over the Internet, which is not something I can see the Irish doing.

Therefore, it really only comes down to advertising. Foreign online casinos can only advertise in Ireland if they obtain the license. Without one, they cannot put ads in magazines, on TV, on the radio, on benches and buses, on subways, or anything like that. They will, however, still be able to advertise freely online, since the internet is global and Ireland doesn’t censor it.