/Photo = Getty Image Bank It is pointed out that while the number of juvenile gambling offenders has increased more than five-fold in the past 10 years, it has become easier to encounter illegal gambling through YouTube live broadcasts, illegal webtoon and web novel sharing sites, etc.
According to the ‘Status of Arrests of Juveniles and Juveniles for Gambling Crimes’ submitted by the National Police Agency to Rep. Kang Yu-jeong of the Democratic Party of Korea, a member of the Culture, Sports and Tourism Committee of the National Assembly on the 15th, the number of criminal juveniles booked for gambling increased from 59 in 2015 to 328 as of August this year alone. It has increased 5.5 times in 10 years. As many as 45 boys under the age of 13, who had not been caught in statistics until 2020, were arrested this year.
For gambling crimes, statistics are compiled based on criminal convictions. Considering that if it is a first offense and the stake is less than 500,000 won, you will be sentenced to probation, and if the stake is more than 5 million won, you will be criminally charged, the juveniles included in the tally are repeat offenders, the stake is more than 5 million won, or they take the initiative to open a gambling den and make a profit. all.
The number of adolescents with severe gambling addiction requiring treatment is also rapidly increasing. According to the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service, the number of youth gambling addicts under the age of 19 jumped from 27 in 2015 to 181 in 2024. The number of younger patients has also increased rapidly, with a 10-year-old gambling addiction patient occurring this year.
The number of youth counselors for gambling addiction treatment has also increased, reaching 2,349 youth counselors in July 2024, up from 503 in 2017.
The period of rapid growth in youth gambling coincides with the period right after the coronavirus when illegal gambling sites were rampant. At the time, illegal online gambling became prevalent when legal gambling establishments such as Kangwon Land were closed due to the ban on gatherings. Since then, the size of the illegal gambling market has increased dramatically, and was estimated to be worth 100 trillion won at the time of the 2022 inspection committee survey.
The paths through which youth encounter illegal gambling are very diverse. There are many teenagers who access illegal OTT, webtoon, and web novel sharing sites through advertising banners, or through recommendations from friends.
Recently, there is a trend of people accessing illegal gambling through YouTube. If you search for ‘Baccarat’ on YouTube, you can watch dozens of real-time live broadcasts without adult verification. YouTube comment sections are plastered with addresses of illegal gambling sites, making them accessible to anyone.
Meanwhile, despite the rapidly increasing number of illegal gambling sites, government measures are insufficient. The ‘Pan-Government Response Team TF to Eradicate Illegal Online Gambling and Protect Youth’ was formed in November last year, but it is evaluated that substantive efforts to solve the problem are insufficient.
Closing down an illegal gambling site requires review by the Korea Communications Standards Commission, and this process takes between one week and three months, while opening a duplicate gambling site only takes one to two days.
However, the number of deliberation staff within the Korea Communications Commission is only 5 people who also engage in illegal financial work, and the number of gambling site deliberations remains at 50,000 each year, 50,000 in 2015 and 50,000 in 2023.
Rep. Kang Yoo-jeong said, “The Gambling Industry Integrated Supervision Committee has no active will to solve the problem even though illegal gambling by youth has been pointed out in government audits for several years.” He added, “The government has neglected the problem of allowing anyone to watch and access gambling on YouTube without adult verification.” “I will point this out during the government audit,” he said.
Kim So-yeon, Hankyung.com reporter [email protected]
