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Tech giants Apple and Google have been accused of playing key roles in a sprawling, illegal online gambling operation as part of a new federal class action lawsuit. The suit alleges that the companies targeted vulnerable users, raked in billions, and kept both platforms flush with profits.
Filed under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO), the lawsuit claims Apple and Google actively enabled and profited from so-called “sweepstakes casinos,” a form of online gambling that operates in legal gray territory.
News: Apple and Google have been named in a new RICO class action lawsuit for facilitating illegal gambling by (1) distributing sweepstakes casino apps through their platforms, (2) taking a % of all in-app purchases of virtual coins; and (3) providing payment processing services. pic.twitter.com/i2UPri2nwj
— Daniel Wallach (@WALLACHLEGAL) March 24, 2025
The plaintiffs, Julio Bargo, Lamar Prater, and Rebecca Platt of New York, allege that the tech firms played a central role in allowing illegal gambling through sweepstakes casino apps.
Lawsuit against Apple and Google claims firms helped enable illegal gambling
According to the lawsuit, Apple and Google enabled the scheme by distributing these apps through the App Store and Google Play, taking a “substantial percentage” of every in-app purchase of virtual coins used for gameplay, “processing illicit transactions” between users and the casinos via their proprietary payment systems, and using targeted advertising and search algorithms to “shepherd the most vulnerable customers to the sweepstakes casino websites and apps.”
The case is a re-filing of two earlier lawsuits that were dismissed without prejudice, which means the plaintiffs were free to try again. This time, though, instead of going after the casino operators themselves, they’re aiming directly at the tech platforms they believe make the whole scheme possible.
The suit states: “The Defendants facilitate the Sweepstakes Casinos’ predatory conduct by helping them target the consumers most likely to fall prey to their illicit scheme.
“The Defendants provide marketing guidance, promotional tools, and more to drive consumers to download the Sweepstakes Casinos’ apps and make in-app purchases.”
It adds: “The Defendants monitor game activity and collect spending data that the Sweepstakes Casinos use to increase user spending on their apps and websites.
The plaintiffs suggest that this was to target so-called “whales” and that a small percentage of high-spending users often account for the lion’s share of revenue.
The suit goes on to say: “The Defendants continue to maintain a sizable financial interest by hosting their apps… using targeted advertising powered by search algorithms… and in many instances, processing payments on behalf of the Sweepstakes Casinos themselves.”
Apple and Google have yet to comment publicly on the lawsuit.
ReadWrite has reached out to Apple and Google for a response.
Featured image: Ideogram
