Fake Online Gambling Ads Continue to Impersonate Legitimate Casinos
Posted on: July 22, 2025, 02:49h.
Last updated on: July 22, 2025, 03:09h.
- Illegal online casinos continue to impersonate legitimate casino properties
- A tribe in Florida says it is the latest victim of the iGaming deception
- No legal forms of slot machines or table games are allowed online in the Sunshine State
Gambling is seemingly everywhere. From commercial and tribal casinos to retail and online sports betting, consumers continue to be bombarded with advertisements and promotional incentives designed to induce them to play.
Endless ads on social media often suggest that online gambling — not just sports betting — is allowed in the user’s jurisdiction. And while it’s true that mobile sportsbooks are legal and regulated in 33 states, plus Washington, DC, online casinos are permitted in only seven.
Outside of Connecticut, Delaware, Michigan, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and West Virginia, it’s illegal to gamble on online slot machines or table games. Offshore and controversial websites that claim to offer social sweepstakes games, however, continue to target US players in prohibited iGaming markets.
Florida Tribe Warns Public
The countless online casino websites based in foreign markets, which allow US-based consumers to gamble unlawfully via the internet, have gotten creative in deceiving the public. As Casino.org reported in April, such fraudulent websites have stolen legitimate casinos’ intellectual property, including their names, logos, and slogans, to advertise their criminal businesses online.
The latest incident comes in Florida, where the Miccosukee Casino & Resort says its likeness was used in illicit iGaming marketing materials. The Miccosukee Casino & Resort is owned by the Miccosukee Tribe.
In a release on the Miccosukee Casino website, the tribe says it’s become aware of fraudulent online gambling ads impersonating its resort and claiming to operate online casino games.
These fake advertisements are misleading and potentially harmful to consumers. Protecting the integrity of our brand and the trust of our guests is a top priority. We want to be clear — Miccosukee Casino & Resort does not operate any online gambling platforms,” said Miccosukee Casino & Resort General Manager Brad Rhines.
The Miccosukee Casino operates without a Class III compact with the State of Florida, as the Seminoles’ casinos do, and therefore can only offer slot-like electronic bingo games, bingo, and non-house-banked table games like poker.
Alligator Alcatraz
The Miccosukee Tribe has been outspoken in its opposition to Alligator Alcatraz, the recently opened immigration detention center in the Everglades’ Big Cypress National Preserve. The controversial facility, envisioned by the US Department of Homeland Security under President Donald Trump’s administration and jointly managed with the Florida Division of Emergency Management, opened July 1.
The tribe’s casino resort is located roughly 25 air miles from the detention center that’s surrounded by alligator and python-infested flooded grasslands.
The Miccosukee Casino & Resort has 1,800 electronic gaming machines, 20 poker tables, a 302-room hotel, five restaurants and bars, flexible meeting space, live entertainment, and a nearby 18-hole championship golf course.
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