Kangwon Land, the only casino in South Korea where locals are allowed to gamble, has issued a public warning after finding out that some illegal online gambling sites have been using its name to trick people.
In an announcement shared on Thursday (June 12), the casino made it clear that it has no connection whatsoever to any online casino services. The translated statement reads: “Recently, illegal online gambling sites impersonating Kangwon Land have been identified.”
The casino stressed that its operations are strictly limited to government-approved physical locations, in accordance with South Korean law.
The notice stated: “We operate casinos only at business locations designated by relevant laws and do not operate any online casinos.
“We kindly ask our customers to be especially cautious to avoid any damage caused by illegal sites.”
The casino’s management is encouraging individuals who come across suspicious sites using its branding to report them to the proper authorities.
Illegal casino sites posing as Kangwon Land
The move comes as a site illegally used Kangwon Land’s corporate logo and name, deceiving users into believing it was an official operation in order to lure them into illegal gambling.
Kangwon Land requested the Korea Communications Standards Commission to block access to the site and has shared the seriousness of the case with the Integrated Supervisory Commission for the Gambling Industry. The company also plans to file a criminal complaint against the site operator with the police.
Choi Chul-gyu, acting CEO of Kangwon Land, added, “In accordance with relevant laws, Kangwon Land does not operate any online casinos outside of its designated physical premises,” and urged the public to be vigilant in order to prevent damage from illegal gambling activities.
The company says it has kicked off a nationwide awareness campaign to alert people about fake online casinos pretending to be official sites. To get the word out, the company is using a variety of platforms like its website, Instagram, blog, and even large digital billboards.
In addition to the public warning, Kangwon Land has filed a criminal complaint with the police against those behind the fake site.
This isn’t the first time something like this has happened. Last year, the company spotted two similar illegal websites through its monitoring efforts. Both were blocked by the Korea Communications Standards Commission, and one of them was reported to police for further investigation on charges of impersonation and running illegal gambling operations.
Featured image: Laserland via WikiCommons, Creative Commons 4.0
