Know Your Customer
Over the last few years, the number of casinos requiring some form of Know Your Customer (KYC) verification has exploded, this is due to regulation changes and all casinos will need to comply with these rules in order to keep their licences. All Australian online casinos require KYC verification at some point, typically before you cash out from your account. This process is essential as it protects the casino and players from fraud.
What Is KYC Verification?
Know Your Customer verification, aka KYC verification, is the process businesses and financial institutions use to assess customer risk. For online casinos, KYC verification is used to verify player information to prevent fraud, money laundering, and general criminal activities.
The KYC process looks to establish a player’s identity and verify that the player is indeed who they say are. This is done through a series of verification checks covering local, national, and international databases.
Why Is KYC Verification Important?
In the early days of online casinos, player fraud and criminal activity were rampant. Players could easily set up accounts, fund them, and launder money through online casinos. When you hear many lawmakers talk about how online casinos are havens of criminal activity, this used to be the case.
However, online casinos began adopting KYC protocols as part of their responsible gambling procedures to verify players, similar to what you see from financial institutions or high-profile businesses. These protocols help to identify legitimate players and help flag potential criminals or high-risk individuals.
This helps protect the casino by significantly reducing fraud and criminal activities. It helps players by eliminating criminal elements and potential fraudsters. It also helps to keep costs down at the casino, ultimately leading to improvements in the casino and overall player experience.
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What Happens If I Don’t Go Through KYC Verification?
Most online casinos now require KYC at some point. Typically, you must go through the process before you can cash out. If you don’t complete the process, your account can be blocked and you can never move your money off of the casinos.
However, a growing number of casinos now require KYC verification before you make a deposit, particularly if you are using a credit card or bank transfer.
Steps of The Verification Process
There are multiple steps that businesses can take when conducting KYC verification. The two primary verifications you will see are customer identification and source of funds (SoF) verification.
Customer Identification
Most online casinos now require KYC verification and primarily stick with customer identification protocols. This verifies that you’re who you say you are and are in a locality where you can legally gamble at the casino.
This form of KYC requires the following information:
- Name
- Address
- Phone Number
- Date of Birth
- Identification Number
Generally, you can complete this verification with the following documents. Sometimes, you may have to take a photo where you’re holding the document.
- Driver’s License
- Government Issued ID
- Birth Certificate
- Passport
Some online casinos will also require that you provide proof of residence. If this is the case, you will need to provide one of the following:
- Bank statement with current address
- Copy of current lease or mortgage
- Copy of utility bill
For many casinos, the verification process begins once you provide this information. A person will often manually review the information and confirm whether you pass or fail the verification checks.
Source of Fund Verification
There are times when a casino will require a source of funds (SoF) verification in addition to customer verification. This process is done to ensure that you are using legal funding sources. Most often, this is done when you’re using a credit card.
To complete a credit card verification, you generally only have to submit a copy of the front and back of your credit card.
In other cases, you may be required to provide proof of funds. When this happens, you may be required to submit banking information, including a current bank statement, proof of employment, or other proof of income. If you’re self-employed, you may even be required to provide a profit and loss statement. This can feel a little intrusive at times, but keep in mind it is a completely normal process, and a requirement for casinos to comply with their licencing.
What The Casinos Do With Your Information
Once you have submitted information for KYC verification, the casino runs your information through a due diligence test. These tests are based on various factors, including your deposit’s value, funding options, and location.
In most cases, casinos will run a basic customer due diligence scan to determine if there are any risks associated with the account. This includes running players through known criminal databases, self-exclusion lists, etc.
If the information passes a due diligence scan, then the KYC process is done – for now. The casino will continue to monitor your account and look for any unusual activity. It is always possible that a player will have to go through KYC verification in the future if their activity raises flags in the system.
Biometrics And Mobile KYC
Many online casinos and businesses are incorporating biometrics into their KYC verification as part of mobile KYC initiatives. Casinos or companies that use biometrics will require real-time scans of a player and their documents.
Generally, a player must take an active scan of a government ID and then take a scan of their face. This runs a player through databases, such as criminal databases, for an immediate check.
Mobile KYC verification is becoming the standard for businesses as it is faster and cheaper than traditional KYC. In many cases, the mobile process takes a few minutes. The manual process can take days or even weeks, depending on the speed of reviewers.
Tips For Completing The Process
While the KYC process is relatively simple, some things can cause snags in the process. Many of these snags can be avoided. Here are a few tips to help you quickly complete the KYC verification process.
Make Sure Your Information Matches on All Documents
In some cases, you must submit both a form of identification and either proof of residence or proof of finances. When this is the case, make sure that your information matches on each document. For example, if you recently moved, make sure everything matches. For ladies, if you recently married, ensure everything matches your married name.
If the information does not match the documents, your verification will likely fail, or you will be required to submit updated documents.
Don’t Wear a Hat or Excessive Jewellery for Biometrics
A biometrics scan will generally try to match your face to your ID or a government registry. If you are wearing a hat or excessive jewellery, such as massive earrings or nose piercings, this may cause you to fail the scan.
Treat the biometrics scan the same as if you are getting a photo for a government ID. This way, you’ll have a better shot at passing.
Scan Actual Documents and Not Photos
If you have previously gone through verification processes online, you may have photographs of your ID or proof of residency documents on your computer. It is natural to assume that you could use this for KYC when asked to take photos of your documents. Unfortunately, this likely will not work.
Many KYC verification scanners can determine that you are taking a photo of a photo and will reject the submission. Instead, you’ll need to photograph the actual documents to pass verification.
Complete the Process As Soon as Possible
Lastly, we always recommend that you go through the KYC verification process as soon as possible. For casinos that require verification before deposit, you’ll have no choice but to go through the process immediately. Otherwise, we still recommend doing this process early on for multiple reasons.
This will speed up the withdrawal process. Most people neglect to verify their account and then have to wait for the process to complete to cash out. Sometimes, this could delay your payments by a week or more.
Check With Customer Support if You Have Problems
In some rare cases, you may have problems completing the verification process. Often, the reason will be obvious, such as you’ve tried to submit a photocopy of your ID rather than scanning your physical ID.
Other times, the system may neglect to tell you. When this happens, you may need to contact customer support for help. They can help you figure out what’s wrong, and if the problem is at the casino’s end, such as a server glitch, they can help get you verified.
