The UK Gambling Commission has slammed Meta, accusing the social media giant of refusing to address the scourge of illegal gambling ads across its platforms.
Speaking at ICE Barcelona, the UK regulator’s Executive Director, Tim Miller, said that the company has left the impression that it is “quite happy to turn a blind eye and continue taking money from criminals and scammers until someone shouts about it”.
“Companies like Meta will tell you that they don’t tolerate the advertising of illegal sites and will remove them if they are notified about them. But that approach suggests that they don’t know about those ads unless alerted. That is simply false,” said Miller.
“Meta has a searchable ad library where you can find all current ads that meet searched keywords. You or I can conduct such a search for ‘not on gam stop’ sites and see for ourselves how many are currently paying Meta to advertise on their platforms. It’s effectively a window into criminality. If we can find them, then so can Meta: they simply choose not to look.”
This sentiment tallies with a previous investigation conducted by Reuters, which revealed that Meta projected 10% of its overall revenue in 2024 came from running ads for scams and banned goods.
Miller added that the UKGC has repeatedly reached out to Meta regarding the prominence of illegal gambling adverts, however, “limited progress” has been made to address the issue.
“[Meta’s] suggestion was that we should deploy AI tools ourselves to monitor and find these ads and then report them,” revealed Miller.
“I would be very surprised if Meta, as one of the world’s largest tech companies, is incapable of proactively using their own keyword facility to prevent the advertising of illegal gambling.
“It does leave Meta with the question of ‘Whose side are you on?’ The consumer and users of your platforms, many of whom are seeking to escape gambling harm, or the criminals and con artists who are using your platforms to prey on vulnerable people right in front of your eyes and whose clutches you risk pushing those vulnerable people into?”
Operators must do more
Miller also issued a rallying call to the regulated market, urging operators to do more to distance themselves from suppliers that are also actively engaging with the black market.
He said: “The dividing line is being muddied by those who want to be a part of supplying legitimate, regulated operators, yet are either indifferent to whether they also facilitate the illegal market or are actively seeking to play both sides.
Given that many of the companies Miller refers to are located outside the UK, Miller noted that it is often tricky for organisations like the UKGC to take effective legal action.
Therefore, he emphasised that it is the role of the regulated market to make working with the unregulated sector “commercially toxic”.
“There is an important and essential role for industry to play,” he implored. “ A role that is further upstream. A role with the aim of commercially strangling those third parties that facilitate unscrupulous operators to steal your customers or exploit vulnerable consumers.”
“As a global, regulated industry, you have significant economic muscle and considerable commercial leverage. And for all of us here today with a shared desire to fight against the illegal market- well, I think we have overlooked this important and powerful weapon in our arsenal. And it’s time we deploy it.”
As part of the effort to improve collaboration with its licensees, the UKGC has announced the appointment of Kirsty Caldwell as the new interim Chair of the Industry Forum, a body dedicated to maintaining a dialogue with the industry.
Caldwell, who has been a member of the forum since March 2024, will be replacing Nick Rust after he stepped down from his role in November 2025.
“I remain fully committed to building a healthy, respected gambling sector, and cooperation and communication between regulator and industry is key to achieving this,” said Caldwell, who has run Betsmart Consulting since 2019.
“We may not get it right every time, but the important thing is we learn from our mistakes, we keep talking, and we keep moving forward.”