Korea is seeing an increasing number of teens getting addicted to online gambling, with many of the victims being students. Based on figures from the Korea Problem Gambling Agency (KCGP), a total of 7,063 students were admitted for gambling addiction treatment from 2017 to 2021.
COVID-19, Social Media Driving Teens Towards Online Gambling
Among the main contributing factors to the rise in gambling addiction cases among Korean teens is the COVID-19 pandemic when people were mostly on home quarantine. Students in particular have had “greater accessibility” to gambling sites during that period, a counselor at Gangdong District’s Paichai High School said.
Gambling sites also actively target young players, according to a police officer from the Gyeonggi Bukbu Police Agency’s cyber bureau.
The advent of social media has also led many students towards online gambling sites, with illegal operators recruiting players via social media pages. Online gambling has also become very popular among teens due to how easy and convenient it is to set up an online gambling account, with no face-to-face transactions required.
A lot of youth-focused websites running illegally, such as Newtoki, also advertise online gambling services, contributing to the rise in numbers.
Over 4.8% of Teens At Risk of Gambling Addiction
A recent survey conducted by Kstat Research shows that 26% of Korean students engaged in online gambling in the last three months, and 4.8 of them have been identified as at risk for addiction. A total of 18,444 students participated in the survey.