Identity verification for online gaming and betting

What gaming and betting operators ask of identity checks

A gaming or betting service has two problems that a password cannot solve. The player must meet the minimum age that applies to the activity and the jurisdiction, and the account must belong to one real person: not a parent's identity borrowed by a minor, not a second account opened to get around a limit or a self-exclusion. The checks sit at two moments: registration, and any return of someone you have already turned away.

• Read the date of birth from the document and test it against the age your licence needs.
• Confirm that the player is the person on the document, and that a live person is present.
• Compare each new registration with people you have excluded, blocked or already verified.
• Screen high-value players against sanctions and PEP lists.

The flow

1. Age gate at registration. The player photographs an identity document. The date of birth is read from the document and compared with the age window in your scenario, which is configurable from 16 to 100.
2. Same person. The selfie is matched to the document portrait, and active liveness confirms a live person. Foreign-face detection and deepfake and face-swap detection run inside the face steps.
3. Exclusion and duplicates. Your own person lists and blocklists are checked, and repeat-user search looks for the same face among earlier verified users.
4. Decision. Thresholds and rules decide whether the player is admitted, sent to a person in the dashboard, or refused.
5. Screening. For players who reach your high-value threshold, AML screening covers sanctions, PEP with relatives and close associates, and adverse media.
6. Result. Your platform reads the session status or receives a webhook.

Modules used

• Age verification uses the date of birth on the document and a configurable window of 16 to 100.
• Document verification, face verification and liveness.
• Repeat-user search, person lists and blocklists, described on the face verification page.
• AML screening, billed separately.
• Web SDK and widget for desktop and mobile browsers.
• REST API and webhooks.

Regulatory frame

What the primary texts say. The first two statements are from an Act of the United Kingdom Parliament. The other three are from the European Union's AML Regulation, which is forthcoming and applies from 10 July 2027.

• Section 46(1) of the Gambling Act 2005, marked in the revised text as extending to England, Wales and Scotland, provides that a person commits an offence if he invites, causes or permits a child or young person to gamble.
• Under section 46(2), subsection (1) does not apply to participation in private or non-commercial gaming or betting, a lottery or football pools, the use of a Category D gaming machine, equal chance gaming in accordance with a prize gaming permit or at a licensed family entertainment centre, prize gaming at a non-licensed family entertainment centre, or prize gaming at a travelling fair in accordance with section 292.
• From 10 July 2027, under Article 3, point (3)(g), of Regulation (EU) 2024/1624, providers of gambling services are obliged entities.
• From the same date, Article 19(5) adds that providers of gambling services apply customer due diligence measures upon the collection of winnings, the wagering of a stake, or both, when carrying out transactions amounting to at least EUR 2,000, whether in a single operation or through linked transactions.
• Under Article 4(1), Member States may exempt providers of gambling services on the basis of proven low risk, but the exemption does not apply to casinos or to providers whose principal activity is online gambling or sports betting, other than certain online services operated or regulated by the State.

This block describes the texts, not our service. For information; not legal advice.

Sources

• Gambling Act 2005, section 46, legislation.gov.uk, fetched 27 October 2026.
• Regulation (EU) 2024/1624 of the European Parliament and of the Council, Official Journal text, fetched 26 October 2026.

Next

Try the interactive tour, read the age verification use case or see how dating and social platforms handle age.