Mr Yip Hon Weng asked the Minister for Home Affairs (a) how many illegal gambling websites and apps are currently blocked and banned in Singapore; (b) why are Singapore residents still able to access such sites and services; and (c) whether the Ministry will consider allowing families of problem gamblers to request the blocking of bank accounts used by these problem gamblers for their gambling activities.
Mr K Shanmugam: As of 31 December 2024, the Ministry of Home Affairs has blocked more than 3,800 illegal gambling websites which we assess to be likely targeted at or likely to be frequented by the Singapore public, and more than 145,000 illegal gambling transactions involving the Singapore public, amounting to approximately $37 million.
These blocking measures have impeded access to illegal online gambling to some extent. However, this approach is clearly not foolproof as illegal operators can easily create new websites and we do not have the ability to know of every gambling website. We encourage members of the public to report illegal gambling websites, apps and advertisements as well as bank accounts used by illegal gambling operators to the Police.
The Government has put in place various measures to help problem gamblers, such as funding Social Service Agencies to provide counselling and run support groups. Families of problem gamblers should encourage them to seek assistance by calling the National Problem Gambling Helpline at 1800-6-668-668 or visiting www.ncpg.org.sg.
Regarding the Member's suggestion, there are no plans for now to allow families to request the blocking of bank accounts used by problem gamblers. Our view is that our current measures are adequate as the probable pathological and problem gambling rate has remained low and stable at about 1%.
