According to the "Manila Bulletin", former anti-corruption commissioner and current CEO of Capstone Intel Corporation, Nicasio Conti, has called on the government to tighten regulations on online gambling advertisements, warning that they could induce addictive behavior and increase social risks.
Conti pointed out that many gambling platforms use digital advertising to attract users, especially targeting economically vulnerable groups, thus gradually "normalizing" gambling behavior. He specifically mentioned that many content creators post entertainment videos related to gambling, even packaging losing money experiences as humorous content, further diluting its harm.
He emphasized that although more than 7,000 illegal gambling websites have been shut down recently, platform operators still evade regulation by frequently changing domain names. Additionally, the widespread use of e-wallets and online banking has made gambling payments difficult to trace, fostering money laundering risks and creating a "gray area" in legal regulation.
Conti urged the government to develop a unified strategy, strengthen regulatory mechanisms, and refer to other countries' strict restrictions or even complete bans on gambling advertisements, to push legislative bodies and relevant units to jointly rectify the online gambling advertisement market and protect the interests of the public, especially vulnerable groups.
