One way to find out more about online casinos and sites promoting online gambling respectively is to look out for some sort of seal from "Third Party Watchdogs" on their website. These are independent companies or associations that made it their business to offer players an extra level of protection by reviewing such sites. These watchdog organizations have their own gaming standards and generally proclaim a set of good practices its members have to adhere to if they want to remain partners.

On this page we will give you an overview of gambling watchdog organizations that are designed to self-regulate the online gambling industry. There are many of these organizations, but we will only focus on the ones that have a good track record, are well respected and widely used as housekeeping seals throughout the online gambling industry.

Most popular Gambling Watchdogs

All gambling websites that carry one of these seals satisfy certain requirements, such as fast payouts, secure transactions, random games and fair play. If a website doesn’t have any of these seals does not automatically mean they are not safe. There are a lot of reputable casinos and gambling sites which simply don’t care about these watchdog seals. But if you do see one of these seals on a site it means an additional plus for this casino.

• e-commerce & online gaming regulation & assurance: eCOGRA's seal of approval is awarded to those casinos that have achieved compliance with eCOGRA's high standards and demonstrated that casino games are fair, all monetary deposits are safe, the casino operates honestly and behaves responsibly. The seal must be clickable and should pop up a message confirming that the casino is approved by eCogra, otherwise this little image means nothing - only that this casino should be taken with a pinch of salt.
• Gambling Commission: The Gambling Commission regulates gambling in the public interest. It does so by keeping crime out of gambling, by ensuring that gambling is conducted fairly and openly, and by protecting children and vulnerable people from being harmed or exploited by gambling. The Commission also provides independent advice to government on gambling in Britain.
• Kahnawake Gaming Commission: The Kahnawake Gaming Commission, established on 10th June 1996 pursuant to the provisions of the Kahnawake Gaming Law, MCR No. 26 / 1996-97, is presently comprised of three members appointed by the Mohawk Council of Kahnawake. The Commission is empowered to regulate and control gaming and gaming related activities conducted within and from the Mohawk Territory of Kahnawake in accordance with the highest principles of honesty and integrity.

  The Regulations are designed to ensure that all online gaming and gaming related activities are carried out by suitable persons and entities, that offer fair gaming and guarantee winners prompt and fast payouts every time they request them. Operational monitoring and audits are conducted on a monthly basis to ensure continuing compliance.

  To ensure that any player who has concerns about gaming irregularities can easily contact the Kahnawake Gaming Commission, permit holders are required to prominently display on their sites the Commission’s logo, hyperlinked to the Kahnawake Gaming Commission Web site.

• Interactive Gaming Council: The Interactive Gaming Council (IGC), founded in 1999 in the U.S. and now based in Canada, is a nonprofit organization that aims to enhance customer confidence in the global interactive gaming indus try in general, and in its members in particular. Its members pay annual fees ranging from $500 to $10000, depending on whether they are affiliates, associates or full members. Among its members you will find casinos, software vendors as well as casino portals from all around the world.
• Gambling Portal Webmasters Association: The Gambling Portal Webmasters Association (GPWA), founded in 2001, is dedicated to helping its members succeed in the online gaming industry. The GPWA provides a platform for affiliates so they can exchange information with other online gaming affiliates around the world and strengthen relationships with affiliate programs.

  GPWA's seal of approval was created as a means to let other users know that a gambling website diplaying such a seal provides consumers with useful additional information. The material found on those web sites extends beyond banner advertisements, the information can be assumed to be well researched and the operator is in good standing within the online gambling industry. The logo must be hyperlinked to the GPWA website and a verification page should pop up respectively, though.

Other independent players & casino portal watchdogs

There are other watchdog seals based on private players' and casino portal operators' independent observations. Some of these gambling portals have dedicated teams that register as real players at a casino to find out about things, such as their service, gameplay, payouts, bonus rules and easy to understand terms and conditions. These independent reviews should not be underestimated. Since to the casino everybody looks like an ordinary player they can't tell whether they are being reviewed. These random evaluations can give revealing information about a casino.

NOTE: Any seals of approval on an online gambling site are a good sign, but If you are not sure about a seal you'd better check and make sure it has a legitimate and trustworthy background.