Fanatics Sportsbook is rolling out a new initiative with Integrity Compliance 360 (IC360) and Signify Group that aims to identify sports bettors who threaten or harass athletes, coaches and officials online, with violators potentially losing access to their betting accounts.
The companies announced the Bad Actor Program on Thursday (June 25), saying it is meant to address the growing wave of abuse directed at sports figures through social media. The system is expected to launch before the upcoming football season, pairing online monitoring with sportsbook enforcement.
Fanatics initiative links online abuse to sportsbook penalties
IC360 said it will work alongside Signify Group’s Threat Matrix service to monitor public activity across platforms including X, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and YouTube. Investigators will review abusive or threatening posts, replies and other public content involving athletes, teams and sports organizations. When behavior meets the program’s standards, individuals may be added to IC360’s ProhiBet Bad Actor platform.
The new system builds on IC360’s existing ProhiBet technology, which already helps sportsbooks block prohibited wagers by athletes, coaches and trainers. Under the expanded version, participating operators can suspend or permanently ban betting accounts belonging to users who direct threats or harassment at sports figures.
Signify said Threat Matrix already tracks online abuse across global sporting events and encourages athletes and officials to report abusive direct messages. Those reports are assessed, investigated and, when appropriate, referred to law enforcement.
Fanatics Sportsbook will become the first legal sportsbook to join the program. The company said customers found engaging in abusive, threatening, defamatory or harassing conduct toward athletes, coaches or officials may face account suspensions or permanent bans. Evidence can also be shared with other participating operators to identify repeat offenders.
“This groundbreaking program will hold bettors accountable for threats made against players, coaches, and officials. It falls in line with our core values at Fanatics – respect and tolerance for the athletes and coaches that play the games that we love,” said Matt King, CEO of Fanatics Betting and Gaming. “We encourage other operators to join the initiative because there is no sports betting potential loss that should embolden a sports betting customer to threaten or harass an athlete online.”
The announcement comes as research continues to highlight the scale of betting-related abuse. An NCAA study released in late 2025 found 36% of Division I men’s basketball student athletes reported sports betting-related social media abuse during the previous year, while 16% of Football Bowl Subdivision football players said they received negative or threatening messages. The NCAA has repeatedly urged regulators and operators to eliminate college player prop bets, arguing they increase risks to student athletes.
The issue was also discussed during a Senate Commerce Committee hearing in May, where IC360 Co-CEO Scott Sadin told lawmakers integrity monitoring relies on real-time cooperation among sportsbooks, leagues, regulators and law enforcement to identify suspicious betting patterns before they threaten competition.
“Threats of violence and harassment in sports at arenas and on social media are increasing at an alarming rate, undermining the integrity of the sports betting industry,” said Scott Sadin, Co-CEO of IC360. “Addressing the individuals with ProhiBet BA and Threat Matrix is crucial to protecting athletes and other stakeholders from serious, long-term harm.”
“We commend Fanatics Sportsbook for taking a leadership position on an issue that affects athletes across every sport. This is a clear message to anyone who believes threatening, harassing or abusing athletes online is simply part of being a fan: it is not,” said Jonathan Hirshler, CEO of Signify Group.
“Over the last few years, many of our global sports clients have been calling for Betting and Gaming Operators to tackle this growing problem head on. Working together with Fanatics Sportsbook and IC360, we’re glad to be able to offer that.”
The companies said the Bad Actor Program is designed both to discourage abusive online behavior and reassure athletes and coaches that credible threats can be identified, investigated and acted upon.
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