A 3-Step Guide for Verifying a Casino License is Real
Casinomeister never shies away from dissecting online casinos. Yet, we’re only human over here, and there aren’t that many hours in a day to review every online casino that pops up.
That’s where you take over. At least if you want to play at a platform we haven’t got a chance to look under the hood of, and you want to make sure it’s a fully licensed and legit place.
Here’s how to ensure an online casino isn’t playing foul games, and the license they show is the one they really worked themselves to the bone to obtain.
Step #1 — Look for the casino license logo
Most usually, legit casinos will nestle their license logo somewhere in their website’s footer. If there’s a big fat zero in their footer, something fishy’s going on, and we recommend clicking the X on your browser and never looking back on that casino ever again.
Step #2 — See what’s going on with the casino license link
If you did manage to find the license logo, now’s the time to make sure it’s clickable and leads you to the regulator’s verification page. In case it’s not clickable or it leads you to an entirely different page — it’s definitely a hard pass.
Shady casinos expect players won’t even bother looking further than a license logo, so don’t let them get away with that if you care about your money and safety.
As of December 2024, Curaçao transitioned to an entirely new
system. This means that Master Licenses issued before 2024 are
no longer valid, and if you see a casino featuring anything
like that on its website, it’s a sure sign they’re
fraudsters.
Step #3 — Visit the regulator’s website
Some scammy casinos will even take it as far as to come up with an entirely fake license number. Others even copy the real prefix format (OGL/2026/xxx/xxxx, for example), but invent the rest.
So to prevent their inventiveness from pulling the wool over your eyes, always verify the license number directly on the regulator’s website. Look for the casino’s name and use their license search. In case there’s nothing there, you know what to do. Run.
Some jurisdictions, such as Anjouan, for example, don’t guarantee any more safety than a completely unlicensed casino would. These authorities are known for throwing out player complaints, which is far from reassuring in case things go awry. So think twice if you see the Anjouan logo in the footer, because you’ll likely be better off throwing your money down the drain.
The bottom line: If a casino license looks shady, and smells shady, it’s time to back off
Now you know it. If there’s anything (and we really mean anything) that looks suspicious license-wise, don’t even bother checking out the rest of a casino’s website. Run like a bat out of hell and never look back.
In case you’d like to learn more about this topic, or simply share your experience with fake licenses, head over to our dedicated forum thread How to Check if a Casino License is Real.
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