Dutch regulator revokes lottery licence obtained by identity fraud in a football club's name
The Kansspelautoriteit says an unknown party posed as the chairman of football club Quick Boys to get the licence, then used it for eight lottery websites.
In brief
- What happened
- The Dutch gambling regulator revoked a lottery licence issued in the name of football club Quick Boys after someone posing as its chairman obtained it by fraud.
- Why it matters
- The regulator says the fraud got past its application process, and it has tightened checks on applicants' identities and on domain names listed in its licence register.
- Who it affects
- Buyers of tickets on the eight websites: the regulator advises them to contact their bank, report to the police and avoid entering personal data.
The Dutch gambling regulator, the Kansspelautoriteit (Ksa), has revoked a lottery licence issued in the name of football club Quick Boys of Katwijk, saying it was obtained by fraud.
According to the Ksa, Quick Boys never applied for a licence and has no link to the websites that sold the tickets. An unknown party posed as the club's chairman during the application and received the licence. The regulator calls the club a victim of identity fraud.
The Ksa said the fraudster then used the licence to set up websites selling lottery tickets. It named eight sites and said none belongs to Quick Boys.
The regulator said it does not know what the fraudster does with the data entered on the sites, which could be misused for phishing or identity fraud. It has filed a police report and made no statement on the investigation.
Key details
- Licence: a lottery licence in the name of Quick Boys, revoked by the Ksa.
- Method: impersonation of the club's chairman during the application.
- Response: the Ksa said it immediately tightened checks on applicants' identities and on domain names entered in the Kansspelwijzer.
- Advice to ticket buyers: ask the bank to reverse the payment, report to the police and the Fraudehelpdesk, and report to the Ksa through its portal.
- Advice if data was entered: be alert to unexpected emails, texts or calls asking for data or payments.
Why it matters
The Ksa says this is not an isolated case. It says fraudsters increasingly use false details to exploit the names and licences of clubs and associations that run legal lotteries, and that it sees more copied websites of legal lotteries.
In another case, the regulator said, extra checks stopped a similar attempt. Ella Seijsener, the Ksa's licensing director, said the regulator takes it "very seriously" that a fraudster misled its application process.
The Ksa advises anyone in doubt to check whether a licence appears in the Kansspelwijzer or to contact the association directly.
Drafted with AI assistance from the regulator's official notice, fact-checked automatically against that source and reviewed by our editors before publication. How we work