The BGC’s 2019 report, conducted by PWC, had already shown that black market spending had doubled since 2018. With the most recent findings, it is clear that illegal gambling continues to be a significant issue, one that poses a threat not only to regulated operators but also to public safety and government revenues. The methodology of the survey also raises questions about the full extent of the black market’s reach.
Another key insight from the report is the role of social media in promoting black market gambling. The study found that 22% of respondents had encountered ads for illegal gambling sites on social media platforms, making it the most common medium for black market advertising. Sports sponsorships and online advertisements each accounted for 13% of respondents’ exposure to illegal gambling brands, while streaming platforms and affiliates contributed to 10% and 9% of exposure, respectively. A recent survey, commissioned by the Betting and Gaming Council (BGC), has revealed that an estimated £2.7 billion is wagered each year in the UK through black market gambling operators.
Sports Betting Systems – An Overview
And then there’s malware—click the wrong link or download the wrong file, and your device could get infected. In 2019, there were approximately 8,400 active sites on the dark web, selling thousands of products and services daily. Mr Dennis sells the unlicensed drug on social media, encouraging buyers to message him on WhatsApp to place an order. Drugs manufacturer Novo Nordisk is the only company approved to sell and market semaglutide, branded as Ozempic and Wegovy, in the UK, but it is now battling against knock-off online sales.
What Are Black Markets And How Do They Operate?
The top five pages of Google results for each search term are collected and affiliated sites and articles are flagged. Unlicensed betting sites are extracted from these affiliates and checked to see whether they are open to UK consumers. Web traffic and average visit duration data for each of the unlicensed sites is then collated. It expects the research will help improve and scale its online monitoring of the black market, as well as providing a starting point for the Gambling Commission to understand the scale of it.
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Unlike illegitimate, black market sellers, licensed online pharmacies are regulated by the GPhC and employ qualified pharmacists and prescribers. Silk Road was the first dark market of its kind, and it’s best known for the buying and selling of illegal drugs online. Silk Road launched in 2011, and although it was shut down by the Federal Bureau of Investigations by 2013, it took less than a month for its successor, Silk Road 2.0, to launch. Silk Road 2.0 was then shut down once again in 2014, and the United States government later seized more than $1 billion worth of Bitcoin in November 2020. One of the bigger changes the internet has introduced to the global marketplace is the ability to find, purchase and receive goods without ever leaving the comfort of home. The allure of the black market is strong for those seeking anonymity, rare items, or illegal goods.
- Drugs manufacturer Novo Nordisk is the only company approved to sell and market semaglutide, branded as Ozempic and Wegovy, in the UK, but it is now battling against knock-off online sales.
- The second category consists of data stores, which specialize in stolen information.
- Transactions occur without taxation, leading to revenue losses for governments.
- A woman who was illegally sold a weight loss drug on social media told the BBC she ended up in A&E vomiting blood.
- She stated, “Simply giving the GC more powers and more resources to tackle the black market won’t in itself, work.
- The BBC contacted the vendor and asked to buy three types of drugs to treat ADHD.
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- Founded in 2014, BriansClub remains one of the oldest and most infamous dark web markets for stolen credit cards, fullz (complete identity kits), and dumps.
- It maintains a very strict level of user verification and integration with an official Telegram account to provide real-time updates to users.
- Despite inflation now being close to the government’s 2% target, the cost of living continues to rise from its already high level.
- More than 23,000 sleeping pills were discovered along with evidence showing banks had received more than £2m from the sales.
- After finishing her master’s in publishing and writing, Melanie began her career as an online editor for a large gaming blog and has now transitioned over towards the iGaming industry.
Dark web markets have exploded in scale and reach in 2025, becoming the most dangerous hubs for trading drugs, stolen data, and hacking tools. These anonymous marketplaces—operating mainly on the Tor network—are now a primary threat vector for businesses and cybersecurity professionals. Of those surveyed, 5.4% said they used both regulated and illegal operators in the UK, while 0.8% bet exclusively on illegal gambling sites. It pooled data from over 6,000 gamblers that play casino, bingo and sports betting online. Despite the appeal of black market sites, there are many reasons to choose a licensed and regulated online casino.
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To determine GGY, it is combining web traffic data collected from unlicensed sites with an average player spend amount. This has been calculated by collecting player spend data across 139,152 online gambling accounts from seven leading operators in the UK. Technological advancements can both aid and hinder black market activities. While improved encryption and anonymity tools help protect users, enhanced tracking and surveillance technologies pose new risks. This can include drugs, weapons, counterfeit money, stolen electronics, rare animals, and even human organs.
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Common side effects of the drugs can include nausea, diarrhea, stomach pain and nausea. But they may also cause serious side effects like kidney, gallbladder, pancreas and vision problems. But it’s also being used “off-label” to help people lose weight, with celebrities like Elon Musk saying the injectable has helped them shed pounds. While large retailers may be able to absorb the costs, smaller independent businesses operating on tighter margins suffer more. And this is coming at a time when small businesses will be feeling the pressure of new import control charges of up to £145 on even small consignments of some foods from the EU. Shoppers have reported seeing more tags on food items, with the devices now attached to things like meat and cheese.
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Receive news, prayer and action points, publications and access to exclusive events. NHS England has ended the routine prescription of puberty blockers to under 18s pending the outcome of possible future drug trials. Scotland’s Sandyford Clinic also announced that it is pausing the prescription of the drugs to new patients.
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Sports sponsorships and other online adverts both had 13% of the vote, with streaming platforms and affiliates at 10% and 9% respectively. Besides highlighting this trend in its new study methodology, the commission also acknowledged that its approach does not account for the time players spend on unlicensed websites when no money is being wagered. The report, which was the pioneering high-profile investigation into the UK black market since the government’s much-anticipated White Paper on gambling reform, uncovered the increasing threat posed by operators that are not regulated. The UK Medicines & Healthcare products Regulatory Agency has cracked down on two websites illegally selling cross-sex hormones used by those who identify as the opposite sex. The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has previously warned that many unregistered online sellers of weight-loss jabs are actually selling fakes.
Believe it or not, some dark web marketplaces have pretty advanced systems for building trust. Sellers often need to pay a deposit to prove they’re serious, and they build their reputation through positive reviews. As of 2020, nearly 57% of the dark web was estimated to contain illegal content, including violence and extremist platforms. The vials of semaglutide sold illegally online do not have the safeguards the official medication comes with to prevent patients from overdosing. Dr Simon Cork, senior lecturer in physiology at Anglia Ruskin University, stresses that semaglutide is not a short-term weight loss solution and is suitable only for people with obesity.
Frontier Economics did acknowledge that their estimates may be conservative, as the survey included high-stakes players, who are more likely to engage with illegal operators. However, the overall trend points to a significant and growing problem within the UK gambling landscape. Among the more concerning aspects of the survey’s findings are the potential financial implications for the UK government. The report highlights that up to £335 million in tax revenues could be lost annually due to the growing prevalence of black market gambling.
Tilly, 22, decided to stop using semaglutide she bought on TikTok after she accidentally injected double the amount she was supposed to. Dale Dennis, a personal trainer from East Yorkshire, sells 10mg vials of the unofficial drug and pre-mixed pens. “The important thing to understand is not just about the prescription. It’s about… all the wraparound care that one gets from senior health-care professionals,” she adds.
Although most of the products contained semaglutide, vials from two different sellers had no semaglutide in them at all, and nearly all of them, including the one bought from the Lip King, did not contain the full dose that had been paid for. Hurst called for tougher enforcement against the black market as the government and regulator “risked sleepwalking into the issue”. High taxes and tough regulations have led to concerns that legitimate operators are being squeezed, making it difficult to compete. However, authorities have been discussing potential tax hikes on licensed gambling operators, which might push more gamblers toward unregulated sites that do not follow the rules.
A BBC investigation found 20 online pharmacies selling restricted drugs without checks – such as GP approval. The data was collected between July 2018 and June 2019 and estimates the average GGY per minute for online slots is £0.32, based on the regulator’s assumption that a significant proportion of unlicensed gambling activity is slots. But, it warns, the current methodology does not account for high spending consumers on other gambling activities like sports betting.
