Ohio’s gaming regulator is considering an amendment to a sports gaming rule.
In a letter to gaming stakeholders, the Ohio Casino Control Commission (OCCC) announced it is proposing an amendment to Ohio Adm. Code 3775-16-03, a gaming rule focused on sports gaming accounts. The amendment would require sports bettors in the Buckeye State to use multi-factor authentication to access their accounts. The proposal, which comes a year after Ohio launched wagering, is aimed at protecting the funds of sportsbook account holders.
Ohioans have accounts across the state’s 20 sportsbooks, which include FanDuel and DraftKings. ESPN Bet — PENN Entertainment’s rebrand of Barstool Sportsbook, also has market access.
Ohio’s current sports gaming rule only requires operators in the state to provide multi-factor authentication methods, which received approval from OCCC Executive Director Matthew Schuler.
Ohio takes similar stance to other sports betting markets
The OCCC’s proposal follows similar changes by states to protect the funds of sports bettors.
In June 2022, New Jersey’s Division of Gaming Enforcement began requiring sports betting operators in the Garden State to implement multi-factor authentication. Later that year, the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board also mandated multi-factor authentication for its bettors.
States across America are proposing amendments to gaming rules behind increased instances of fraud. The U.S. Attorney’s Office Southern District of New York pressed charges in 2023 against Joseph Garrison, an 18-year-old from Wisconsin. Garrison was charged with six counts related to fraud after allegedly hacking into more than 60,000 DraftKings accounts to steal over $600,000.
Garrison pled guilty to one count of conspiring to commit computer intrusion. He faces up to five years in prison.
