Encryption is crucial to all sorts of industries today, as well as providing individuals with a way to protect their data from third party interference.
Of course the ways in which data encryption is used can differ depending on the company and the context, and online casinos are especially well positioned to take advantage of what this technology has to offer.
With that in mind, here is a look at the deployment of data encryption by online casinos, and what this can teach us about the wider applications of improved information security solutions.
Contents
The risks involved
There are lots of myths surrounding the way that land-based gambling venues are run, but when you discover the truth about casinos, you will quickly realize that a lot of the smoke and mirrors that are claimed to be at play are actually either patently not true, or used for a very different reason than you might assume.
Data encryption is a great example of this, extrapolated to the online arena where web-based gambling has become a huge and growing industry in recent years.
You might think that encryption is used in order to obfuscate some element of the way casino sites function from players in order to extract more cash from them, when in reality it is put into place specifically to minimize the likelihood of common cyber threats causing compromises to the security of sensitive information.
The reputational benefits
Online casinos are similar to many other modern businesses in the respect that they understand the perks which come with investing in data encryption as a brand-building exercise.
In a crowded marketplace, it pays to keep up with the competition and ensure that prospective customers can have confidence that if they spend cash with you, their private data will not end up in the hands of some malicious outsiders.
As such, data encryption is used by casino sites both to bolster the reputation of their brand and also to prevent it from being damaged by any breaches that might otherwise occur if lesser levels of protection were put in place.
The regulatory requirements
Using data encryption to preserve the image of an online casino brand in the eyes of its customers is all well and good, but perhaps the most significant motivation behind adopting this type of technology comes from industry regulators.
In the modern era, casino sites can serve customers around the world, and yet there are only a few places where they are legally allowed to operate, and these tend to be in places where regulations are stringent for the specific purpose of providing players with adequate protection.
As such, if casino sites want to not only acquire licenses to run their businesses in the first place, but also to continue renewing these licenses successfully year after year, they cannot afford to overlook the need for encryption.
Both regional and global data protection laws have become far tougher in recent years, and all businesses would do well to familiarize themselves with the ins and outs of the most prominent acts, such as the GDPR from Europe and the CCPA from California.
The connection protection
While encryption is certainly used by online casinos to keep things like customer records and payment details safe from prying eyes, it is not just static, stored information which is shielded in this way; connections with players must also be offered additional protection thanks to modern solutions to avoid the kinds of dilemmas that could quickly evolve into well-publicized scandals.
For example, SSL certificates are harnessed by casino sites to create a secure connection with visitors, which means that any data which is sent and received during a session cannot be intercepted by anyone else and, even if it is, it should be virtually impossible for the encrypted information to be cracked and exploited afterwards.
An encrypted connection to a casino site is just one piece of the puzzle; the best sites will also make use of payment processing partners that are similarly resilient in terms of the encryption they offer to customers.
The conclusions
All of this means that you can confidently play on casino sites thanks to the efforts that have gone into making sure data encryption is present as much as possible throughout this experience.
Of course this only applies if the casino site in question is reputable, so be sure to look out for mainstream, independently recognized brands and steer clear of phishing sites that target gambling fans.
