Statistically speaking, there are over 3 billion active gamers across the world. From children playing ludo on their phones to adults gambling with real money, the gaming industry has a diverse audience. It is a very profitable industry but also has a high risk of fraud.
Onboarding unverified gamers can cause serious trouble. Criminal players have been known to launder money through gaming platforms. In 2023, Roblox Corp lost an estimated $110 million to fraudulent transactions and scams.
Apart from financial losses, this harms the gaming platform’s reputation and relationship with legitimate players. How can this be fixed – automated gaming ID verification (Automated Know Your Player – KYP). Let’s learn more about KYP.
What is Gaming ID Verification?
Online gaming platforms do not have any face-to-face contact with players. Gaming ID verification is a process that may be used to ensure that players are who they claim to be. This process helps gaming platforms meet regulatory obligations and create a transparent, secure gaming ecosystem.
The KYP process is quite simple. Players enter their personal details and some form of documentary ID proof while being onboarded. These details are then extracted from the documents and checked against reliable third-party databases. If the details match, the player’s identity may be considered verified.
Player details may also be screened against lists of known fraudsters, money launderers and politically exposed persons.
How Does Gaming ID Verification Help?
Verifying player identities before they can be onboarded helps gaming platforms ensure that only legitimate players enter their ecosystem. Here are a few ways it makes the gaming experience safer for everyone.
Prevent Money Laundering
Online gambling platforms are used to launder money in many different ways. Large sums are often used to make several small transactions that evade detection.
Illicit funds may be introduced into gambling accounts, used for in-game purchases and then withdrawn. Fraudsters may also make coordinated bets with deposited funds to hide the money’s origin. Similarly, intentionally losing at online games like poker lets criminals make covert transfers.
Verifying player identities keeps known criminals out of the system. In turn, this lowers the risk of money laundering and protects the gaming platform’s reputation.
Limiting Access to Age-Restricted Content
Given the diverse audience, gaming platforms must find ways to restrict minors from accessing adult content. In 2023 26% of 11 to 17-year-old minors in the UK admitted to gambling online.
Adding a button that says “I am 18 years old” does not do much to limit access to such content. Minors may even use fake IDs. This is where player verification comes in. The process of verifying player identities also verifies their age.
This makes it easier to limit access to age-appropriate content and protects minor players. For example, a gaming platform may limit access to in-game chat features to players over a certain age.
Protect Legitimate Players Against Fraud
Criminal activities like identity theft, account takeovers, payment fraud, etc. are unfortunately common on gaming platforms. Fraudsters may create multiple accounts with stolen identities and use them to make in-game purchases. These may then be withdrawn illegally.
Online gamers are also at risk of losing access to their gaming accounts through phishing attacks or malware.
Player verification minimizes this risk and builds a safer platform where players can interact with other players with lower risks of being cheated.
Build Player Trust
Online players often gamble with real money. Unfortunately, as the world of online gaming has evolved so have cheat codes. Ill-intentioned players may use fraudulent means to bypass the system and rig multi-player games in their favour. For example, they may download speed hacks from the darknet to make their virtual avatars faster.
In 2023, Call of Duty developers banned 14,000 accounts for cheating. But this may not be enough. Banned players can re-enter the game with a new identity.
This can be prevented with player verification. Along with verifying the player’s identity, the verification tool can check the individual’s details against a known list of cheaters and ensure that previously banned players are not allowed to re-enter the game.
Balancing Player Verification with Seamless Onboarding
When it comes to digital KYP, the largest hurdle is implementing it in a way that does not slow down the player onboarding process. Players do not want to have to switch between windows and click on emailed verification links or enter OTPs.
Automating the KYP checks helps overcome this. No additional action is required at the player’s end. Once the player enters his/ her details, their identities are verified in seconds and the onboarding process can move on.
Finding the Right Player Verification Tool
Given the importance of online identity verification, there are several tools available today. Here are a few things to help you pick the right tool.
Flexible Identity Verification: Choose a tool that supports multiple verification methods, like document and biometric checks, for greater security.
Seamless Integration: Ensure the tool easily integrates with your existing systems for a smooth setup.
Global Database Access: If you serve an international audience, opt for a tool that can verify identities in all relevant countries.
Age Verification: The tool should accurately verify players' ages to help prevent underage access.
Address Verification: Confirm that the tool can check player locations to block access from regions where online gambling is restricted, like Thailand, Jordan, and Germany.
In Conclusion
The rapid growth of the online gaming industry has made it critical for gaming platforms to be able to verify player identities. Implementing stringent KYP checks not only aids with compliance but also prevents underage gambling and protects players from fraud, bullying and money laundering. With the right identity verification tool, this process can be automated to maintain a safe environment for gamers while delivering a seamless player experience. Get started today.
Want to learn more about how Melissa can support the gaming industry in the fight against fraud?
Schedule a demo with our experts today.