Examining Youth Protections against Gambling in Ireland: A Tiger Team (Red Team) Examination of the National Lottery
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.54103/2282-0930/30098Keywords:
National Lottery, youth protections, gambling, youth gambling, age verification, Ireland, public healthAbstract
Background: Youth gambling in Ireland is of growing concern.
Objectives: Thus, this study evaluated youth gambling protections in the Irish National Lottery’s online age verification system.
Methods: A Tiger Team (Red Team) methodology was used. This involved using falsified National Lottery accounts (n = 56).
Results: Over half (55.4%) of attempts were successfully verified, with successful verification significantly varying by gender.
Conclusions: These findings highlight vulnerabilities in the National Lottery’s online age-verification system and underscore the urgent need for more robust safeguards to prevent underage access.
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