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As eSports become more popular, time for the industry to get real about security

Published

3 years ago

July 26, 2021

Reading Time: 4 minutes

Police in Ukraine recently seized 3,800 PlayStation 4 consoles, which currently retail for around 290 each, and found to their surprise that the operation wasn’t mining cryptocurrency as they assumed but was in fact being used to generate content packs for FIFA Ultimate Team, a popular game mode in the FIFA football series.

The raid and its results underline a fact that may escape more traditionally minded members of the gaming community: eSports is a major industry, and like any industry it is susceptible to fraud. The fact that the games themselves take place virtually is irrelevant to fraudsters who can use the familiar toolkit of multi-accounting, bonus abuse and affiliate fraud to earn thousands.

With many sports teams unable to play throughout much of 2020 and 2021, eSports grew massively. League Championship Series (LCS), one of the largest eSports leagues, became the third most viewed professional sports league amongst 18-34 year olds in the U.S and has retained its corporate sponsors at a time when other leagues were shut down. Success stories like these are blunted by how pervasive eSports fraud is,

So, what kinds of fraud are taking place in eSports, what is it costing eSports organizations and what can be done to stop it?

What kinds of fraud are possible in eSports?

eSports attracts very similar types of fraud to regular sports betting, including:

Bonus Abuse: Like other sports betting companies, eSports companies often give sign-up bonuses such as free bets to new players. By coding automated systems, a fraudster can sign up to hundreds of accounts and use the free bets to win real money. This can cost gaming companies up to 15% of their revenue.
Multi-accounting: Similarly, a fraudster can use multiple accounts to perform other types of fraud, such as matched betting, ‘smurfing’ or arbitrage of affiliate fraud.
Affiliate Fraud: Those eSports betting organizations that draw in some of their new players from affiliates are vulnerable to affiliate fraud in which an affiliate creates fake accounts to gain the pay-out.
Account takeover: Using lists of passwords from data breaches, keyloggers or phishing a fraudster can gain access to a player’s account and drain their funds.
Chargeback fraud: A player, who may be a legitimate gamer and not a professional fraudster, initiates a chargeback on a transaction. This is common in gaming when gamblers regret a bad bet and claim that their account was hacked.

The costs of eSports fraud

Fraud costs have a way of snowballing, with each $1 lost through fraud actually costing companies $3. The above techniques are hardly equivalent to the major data breaches of major banking and tech companies that cost on average $3.86 million, but the constant barrage of low-level frauds can soon drain your company’s security budget. Aside from the cost of the fraud itself, there are a number of hidden costs such as:

Chargeback losses: Investigating and disputing chargebacks will take up your risk team’s time, leaving them little time for more valuable activities. More worryingly, a company with a large number of chargebacks is likely to find it difficult securing credit or loans. Visa and Mastercard’s resolution processes are making things even more difficult for merchants, so you are likely to lose even more.
Affiliate budget waste: You could be paying for useless clicks from bot networks rather than legitimate customers, wasting your marketing budget and reducing overall ROI.
Reputational damage: Once word of mouth spreads about customers losing the entire bank accounts to account takeovers it will not be long until players start deserting your site.
Regulatory fines: The regulations around eSports are not as stringent as with other sports betting, but it will not be long before they catch up. With the industry growing it will not be long before countries put regulations in place to protect players, and without stringent security your company could be fined.

The solutions

You will notice that the majority of the types of fraud common in eSports have to do with fake accounts. These are easy for fraudsters to create using the wealth of publicly available data and leaked information, but fortunately artificial intelligence-based tools have been developed that allow companies to spot synthetic identities.

Through device fingerprinting, email profiling and IP analysis a complete picture of a new signup to your site can be created, allowing software to spot the tell-tale signs of a hastily created account. For example, it could find that an email address does not match any social accounts, or that they use VPNs and data centers to conceal their IP address.

Of course, a sophisticated fraudster could create a convincing fake identity, especially with the wealth of information available from data dumps, so modern technology can also spot the use of pre-paid credit cards or even the speed with which information is entered, which could indicate it is being filled in automatically by a script.

By combining data points from a large and ever-growing set a system can determine whether it is likely that any given new account is fraudulent. For the many cases in which it will not be fully clear whether an account is authentic or not adaptive Know Your Customer checks can be used – customers with several red flags will be given full tests to determine their identity whereas other customers will have less obtrusive tests for a smoother site experience.

eSports has gone from a niche concern to an Olympic sport in a few short years, and that success is going to attract fraud, so it is vital for the industry to pre-emptively defend against fraud by adopting the very highest levels of security.

To learn more, visit: https://seon.io/

Related Topics:eSports latest-news PlayStation 4

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Industry Awards

ProgressPlay Shines Again as a Finalist in Multiple Categories in the 2024 EGR B2B Awards

Published

8 mins ago

April 23, 2024

Alan Campbell

Reading Time: 2 minutes

ProgressPlay, a leading innovator in online casino and sports betting platforms, proudly announces its selection as a finalist in multiple categories for the esteemed EGR B2B Awards. This recognition comes hot on the heels of Marina Nahhas, the Head of Sales and Marketing, being acknowledged as one of the Top 10 Inspiring Leaders in 2024 by Value Icons Magazine.

Last year, the company made significant advancements in responsible gambling with the introduction of new generation proprietary automation and tools, earning another EGR B2B Awards shortlisting this year in the Safer Gambling category.

Earlier this year, ProgressPlay garnered acclaim for its groundbreaking standalone solution and platform technology, earning a spot among the Top 10 Casino Tech Solutions Providers by CIO Applications Europe. The company has further expanded its sports betting offerings with the recent addition of United Kingdom and Irish horse racing to its platform.

At the heart of ProgressPlay’s recent success is its revolutionary standalone platform, which debuted at ICE in January. This platform empowers casino brands to take full control of their operations while ProgressPlay provides unparalleled technology support. With a focus on AI-driven UI/UX, the platform promises an exceptional user experience across all devices and currencies.

In addition to its extensive game library including slots, live dealer games, poker, table games and sports betting options, ProgressPlay offers value-added services to enrich the offerings for operators and players.

Commenting on the EGR Awards shortlisting, Nahhas remarked: “ProgressPlay is a leading provider of online casino and sports betting platforms, offering a comprehensive suite of solutions tailored to the evolving needs of the iGaming industry, which these EGR B2B shortlistings recognise once again. We will be at SiGMA Asia in Manila to communicate why over 150 online casino and sportsbook brands are already in partnership with us.”

“We are thrilled to be recognised once again by the EGR B2B Awards,” the Chief Executive Officer for ProgressPlay, Itai Loewenstein, said. “Our commitment to innovation and excellence drives us to continually enhance our platform and services, delivering unparalleled value to our partners and players alike and underwritten by the judges each year at the EGR B2B Awards.”

For further information visit www. ProgressPlay. com.

Latest News

Conall McSorley Announced as New Head of Racing at SIS

Published

23 mins ago

April 23, 2024

Alan Campbell

Reading Time: < 1 minute

Experienced industry figure to oversee racing product portfolio

Sports Information Services (SIS), the leading multi-content supplier of 24/7 live betting services, has announced the promotion of Conall McSorley (pictured) to Head of Racing.

In his new role, McSorley will be primarily responsible for SIS’ racing product proposition, shaping the strategy and direction across retail and digital channels. He will work with stakeholders globally to develop the best live racing offering for operators and end users while continuing to oversee SIS’ non-Americas international racing portfolio.

With over 20 years of experience holding several senior executive positions with betting operators and suppliers, McSorley will drive the continued development and delivery of the SIS racing offer that comprises a 24/7, end-to-end solution, presenting a regular flow of short-form betting opportunities to operators worldwide.

SIS carries over 35,000 horse races and more than 27,000 greyhound races annually, with action from over 170 tracks producing 8,760 hours of highly engaging betting content for global operators.

“Our 24/7 racing offering delivers great value to operators all over the world, so it is an honour to be handed the task of overseeing a product that drives revenues while being enjoyed by millions of people,” McSorley said. “We will continue striving to further develop our high-quality product, which offers a constant stream of regular betting opportunities.”

“Conall has shown in his time with SIS that he has the product knowledge and commercial acumen that will help us to continue leading the way in delivering top-class products to a growing number of partners,” the Chief Operating Officer for SIS, Andy Purkiss, said. “We’re excited to see him take on this new role and look forward to building on the strong momentum our racing offering has produced in recent months while adding value for our customers and rights partners.”

Latest News

Checkd Group Accelerates Growth Strategy with James Prosser Appointment

Published

1 hour ago

April 23, 2024

Alan Campbell

Reading Time: 2 minutes

Industry veteran joins as a consultant in run-up to Euro 2024

Technology-led sports betting specialist Checkd Group has appointed James Prosser (pictured) as Growth Consultant in a move designed to boost revenue generation potential ahead of a big summer of football.

Bringing a fresh and innovative approach to product and content, Prosser will take up a short-term role to focus on the quality of the user experience across all channels, providing a revamped and more customer-friendly product ahead of Euro 2024. This will comprise expanded bet types, improved customer journeys and better conversion for Checkd’s operator partners.

With over ten years of experience in the industry, Prosser will also add value to several teams across Checkd Group through his vast experience, knowledge and network in the affiliate space. The ex-Spotlight Sports Group Affiliate Director and co-founder of Free Super Tips and myracing will also aid the team’s long-term strategy by diversifying traffic sources.

The new addition follows the recent creation of Checkd Media’s new Digital PR team, boosting its organic search performance across its key sites in the United Kingdom and the Americas.

“I’ve long been impressed by how Checkd Group have performed predominantly through its social channels, so it was an easy decision to agree to join its team,” Prosser said. “To build on this success, we’re looking at taking a holistic view across all channels and diversifying traffic sources with a focus on data-driven solutions to elevate visibility and conversions. I’m looking forward to contributing to the excellent team already in place and providing additional expertise and experience to help shape the future of Checkd Group’s digital offering.”

“James’ addition to our team as a dedicated Growth Consultant marks a significant milestone in our journey toward exponential growth,” the Managing Director for Checkd Media, Alex Beecham, said. “With his previous experience and expertise in the space, James is already adding value and ideas on how we can optimise the user journey and conversion touchpoints. The move should help push on our platforms ahead of the Euros and new NFL season in the United States.”