“Half of Online Gambling Offenders Are Teenagers”
It has been revealed that a significant number of those involved in gambling offenses are teenagers. The reasons why teenagers are engaging in online gambling and their motives have been detailed.
Let’s take a closer look at what the National Police Agency reported. Yesterday, the agency announced that over the past year, they had conducted a special crackdown on cyber gambling. They apprehended 9,971 gambling offenders, and among them, 4,715 were teenagers, accounting for a staggering 47.2%.
On average, each teenager squandered around 780,000 won on gambling. There was even a 16-year-old male student who bet as much as 190 million won. The age group 16 to 18 made up 83% of the teenagers caught, with 97% being male.
The number of teenage gambling offenders has skyrocketed over the past year. During a crackdown a year ago, there were merely 162 teenage offenders, but after this special crackdown, the number surged over 2,700% to 4,672.
When the arrested students were asked why they turned to online gambling, the majority cited “curiosity” as their reason. Some of these students even become recruiters, known as “chopans,” who bring other friends into gambling. Earlier this year, a gambling website organization worth over 500 billion won was dismantled, with a shocking 12 teenage recruiters involved.
In some cases, middle and high school students have collaborated to create and operate gambling servers themselves, only to be caught by the police.
What is drawing teenagers into the world of online gambling? Experts point to the advancement of IT devices and financial services, which have made financial access easier, as a key factor. While the police monitor gambling-inviting sites and schools emphasize education on the risks of gambling, the increasing number of apprehensions suggests the need for more effective measures.
It’s crucial that we seriously consider how to prevent our children from falling into the traps of gambling before they even have the chance to pursue their dreams.
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