Last month, the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement fined NYX Digital (Scientific Games) following a situation wherein self-excluded players were allowed to continue playing and amassed huge losses.
A “self-excluded player” is someone who has a gambling addiction, and voluntarily signs up to be prevented from gambling on a website. A player must fill out a form and have it approved. When the request is approved, the player is added to a self-exclusion list and is effectively banned by all gambling operators within the self-exclusion program.
NYX Digital provides online casino gambling under the license for Resorts Casino Hotel, and through the websites ResortsCasino.com and MoheganSunCasino.com.
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What Exactly Happened
The state of New Jersey imposed a $36,000 civil fine against NYX Digital (Scientific Games) according to a settlement claiming that the company violated the state’s self-exclusion gambling rules. These rules were put in place to protect the public, and help problem gamblers. The complaint was filed in November, 2019.
The complaint filed in November stated that on Feb. 14, 2019, a self-excluded player reported to Resorts Digital that he had filled out the self-exclusion form on MoheganSun.com on Jan. 26, 2019. However, that self-excluded player was still able to gamble on ResortsCasino.com.
The Department of Gaming Enforcement discovered that there was an error in software released on October 10, 2018, that included errors in the code that supported adding self-excluded players to the Division’s self-excluded list by operator/skin.
Once a player is added to that list, they should not be able to gamble on any gambling platform in the state. The software errors meant that anyone self-excluding from the MoheganSunCasino.com was not added to the state’s list.
The Department of Gaming Enforcement indicated that nine gamblers were adversely affected by software errors. Consequently, all nine players were manually added to the self-exclusion list on February 16, 2019. Likewise, NYX Digital successfully made an emergency fix to the faulty software.
Big Losses
It was found that five of the nine players that should have been added to the self-excluded list lost a combined $31,060 by playing on other platforms. The losses occurred between October 10, 2018, and February 16, 2019. In addition, just two of the players accounted for nearly $30,000 of those losses.
One player that self-excluded on MoheganSun.com lost $13,762 in less than a month on other gambling platforms. Another player self-excluded on MoheganSun.com and lost $16,099.
Unfortunately, New Jersey State gambling regulations will not allow the gamblers to recover their losses.
The New Jersey Casino Gambling Self-Exclusion Program
The Council on Compulsive Gambling of New Jersey works in collaboration with the Department of Gaming Enforcement to offer the self-exclusion program. The program covers both online as well as land-based casino gambling. Self-exclusion can be a very valuable tool for anyone struggling with problem gambling.
There are four ways to sign up for the New Jersey Casino Self-Exclusion Program which includes self-exclusion from Atlantic City casinos, including online gaming, or for internet gaming only.
Option 1: A problem gambler can self-exclude in-person from all casino gaming activities located in Atlantic City casinos and also from all online gambling websites. The minimum self-exclusion periods are one year, five years or for a lifetime.
Option 2: A problem gambler can also self-exclude in-person from all online gambling activities. The minimum self-exclusion periods are one year, five years or lifetime.
Those wishing to self-exclude in-person can visit any one of the four racetracks in the state, or submit the form by visiting the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement at these two locations:
140 E. Front Street
Trenton, NJ
609-441-3846
9:00 a.m. to 3:00 P.M.
Arcade Building
Tennessee Ave. and Boardwalk
Atlantic City, N.J. 08401
609-441-3846
8:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
Option 3: You can also self-exclude yourself from gambling by visiting the self-exclusion registration website at https://www.njportal.com/dge/selfexclusion
Option 4: You can also sign up for self-exclusion through your online player account. The minimum self-exclusion periods are one year or five years. (This option failed the above players)
