Sweepstakes Crackdown Exposes Consumer Losses on Supposedly Free-to-Play Sites

Posted on: March 18, 2025, 12:52h. 

Last updated on: March 18, 2025, 02:12h.

Devin O'Connor @CasinoorgDevinO Read More

Expertise: Asia Pacific Gaming, Commercial Gaming, Legislation, Politics.

• Officials in Connecticut say High 5 Games has violated its license
• State regulators say the online gaming service provider has operated an illegal casino online
• Sweeps casinos continue to face legal scrutiny across the nation

Sweepstakes gaming platforms and apps that are billed as free-to-play social casino operations have led to significant financial losses for some consumers, a crackdown of the industry exposes.

Last Friday, the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection’s (DCP) Gaming Division issued a summary suspension against High 5 Games, a New Jersey-based business-to-business provider of online casino games. High 5 Games’ Online Gaming Service Provider license issued by the DCP has been halted after the Connecticut agency that’s tasked with protecting the public from fraud, unfair business practices, and physical injury from unsafe goods and services determined that High 5 Games was operating an illegal online gambling outfit aside from its legal, approved business.

“High 5 Games took advantage of their credential to mislead consumers into believing they were participating in gaming on a legal platform when, in fact, they were breaking the law. If you choose to participate in online gaming, you should only utilize one of the legal platforms licensed to operate in our state,” said DCP Commissioner Bryan Cafferelli. 

Sweepstakes Defense

Sweepstakes gaming businesses believe they function within the scope of the law where they operate. They claim the vast majority of their customers never make a financial deposit, and instead, only play with free credits, labeled as “gold coins” on the High 5 Casino.

The operators behind the sweeps sites say the sweeps coins allow players to win prizes not unlike how many other businesses run sweepstakes promotions.

High 5 Games has always upheld the highest regulatory standards and remains committed to compliance across all jurisdictions in which we operate. We are committed to cooperating with Connecticut regulators to resolve this matter and maintain the integrity of our gaming licenses,” High 5 Games said in a statement to Casino.org.

The company added that it “treasures” its relationships “with all iGaming operators as clients, and we safeguard these relationships with extreme care.” 

Financial Losses Revealed 

Sweepstakes and promotional contests can be effective marketing tools to drive customer engagement, lead generation, and boost brand awareness. But unlike say Walmart running a sweepstakes contest where it gives away free $1,000 gift cards to select individuals who complete an in-store customer survey, participating in High 5 Casino sweepstakes can carry significant financial risk.

The DCP is pursuing 1,065 criminal counts of conducting illegal gaming activity against High 5 Games. Each count is a Class A misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in prison and a fine of $2,000.