Ukraine blacklists 59 gambling sites, busts three local ones

Ukraine’s government has blocked the domains of 59 internationally licensed online gambling operators, even as the country’s efforts to regulate its own online market remain bogged down.

On Tuesday, the Security Service of Ukraine (SSU) announced that material it provided had led to the courts ordering local internet service providers to block 59 unauthorized gambling domains. The SSU said it would continue to “take all necessary measures to bring to justice” individuals who flout the country’s online gambling laws.

The SSU declined to specify the identities of these 59 online rapscallions, but did say they included the “20 most popular platforms among Ukrainian gamblers.” In February, Ukraine’s telecom regulator ordered the blocking of 32 gambling domains, including familiar western faces such as PartyPoker and Pinnacle.

On Wednesday, the ever-busy Cyber Police of Ukraine announced the arrest of a 46-year-old man in Odessa accused of running three unauthorized online casinos that catered to over 20k users in Ukraine and Russia. The man also operated a payment processing network that generated ‘earnings’ of over UAH1m (US$37,500) per month. The police noted that the three sites have now been blocked, but it’s unclear if they are among the 59 cited above.