Several of the most legitimate and trusted online casino brands are licensed and regulated out of Kahnawake, Canada, which was one of the very first jurisdictions to legitimize the online gambling industry and provide safeguards and regulations to make participation for players safe. This gaming commission has been involved in the industry for more than 14 years and is considered one of the foremost authorities on interactive gaming worldwide.
They license and regulate both online and land-based gambling operations. They are trusted by operators, players and industry professionals because of their refined services and strict licensing requirements, as well as their stringent regulatory oversight as a whole. They require that any online gambling operation that is licensed and regulated by the Commission be hosted at Mohawk Internet Technologies. This is a data center that is located within the Mohawk Territory of Kahnawake. You can read more about their requirements for inclusion on the official Commission website.
Being mandated to regulate gaming for the Kahnawake region, they are empowered by section 35 of the Kahnawake Gaming Law to enact regulations that are necessary to fulfill that mandate. Applicable regulations have been amended multiple times over the years. They have received assistance in drafting and revising their official regulations from the former Director of the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement, Frank Catania, among others.
Their primary objectives as a regulatory body are to ensure that online gambling operations are administrated responsibly, fairly, and honestly, and to ensure that operators treat their players fairly and pay out winnings and account balances promptly and according to the law. They also have made it a priority to ensure that operators keep player account information private and protected, and that protection is in place for underage players and players who are vulnerable or at risk.
In fact, they have extensive voluntary exclusion options in place to assist players who have developed gambling problems in withdrawing from participation. The Kahnawake Gaming Commission is a strong supporter of responsible gaming.
In addition, they also provide arbitration services to players to assist when issues arise between the player and any of the online gambling operations which are licensed and regulated by the Commission. In the same sense, they also protect their permit holders from fraudulent and unscrupulous player behavior. The process to become licensed is a complex one that includes stringent requirements that must be met.
The Commission has engaged multiple industry agents to participate in the determination of a brand’s legitimacy and in maintaining compliance and certifications for operators. The agencies carry out functions for and on behalf of the Gaming Commission, including auditing, testing, system reviews and the administering of continuous compliance programs for each operation that is licensed.
These approved inspection agents include the following names: NFC Global, eCOGRA, Gaming Associates, iTech Labs, and Technical Systems Testing. You will often see the logos of these agents displayed on licensed online gambling sites because of the involvement between the agent and gambling operation concerning compliance and certifications.
This governing body has established designated several ways for players and industry professionals to determine whether a brand has been legitimately licensed and regulated by the Kahnawake Gaming Commission. Each brand that has been licensed by them has received a Certificate of Good Standing. As an example, we have included a link to Bovada Casino’s certificate.
Legitimately licensed brands are able to display the Commission’s official logo on their site which is also a hotlink to the brand’s certificate so that it can be verified by players and visitors to the online gambling site. Any gambling site which displays an old logo or one that is in any way different from its current logo is not considered to be displaying current evidence of licensing and certification.
Another form of verification is to visit the Commission’s website and look at their list of Interactive Permit Holders by URL or by operator. You can do that on their website using these links: Search by URL, Search by Operator.