The e-Commerce and Online Gaming Regulation and Assurance group is a London-based company that was started in 2003 with the goal of establishing international standards for online gaming institutions to follow and provide protection for online gamblers. Accreditation from eCOGRA is now seen as essential to any company hoping to operate a highly successful online casino.
eCOGRA set about offering to regulate the online gambling industry by offering seals of approval to online gambling institutions and the software providers who create their gambling software. In general, eCOGRA looks to work with casinos and software makers who share their vision of fair and responsible gaming practices. eCOGRA will offer their Safe and Fair seal to any institution or software maker who passes their certification process. eCOGRA’s certification process consists of on-site visits to ensure standards are being met and findings are documented in Compliance Reports. Casinos and software makers must also undergo annual investigations to ensure they continue to meet standards if they wish to keep their Safe and Fair seal.
The non-profit company’s goals go far beyond just ensuring online casinos are operating responsibly, they also seek to offer protection for online gamblers as well. eCOGRA not only does their best to make sure players are well informed of their rights, responsibilities, and which sites are trustworthy; but they also act as a mediator when there are disputes between gamblers and certified sites.
With the growing popularity of online gambling, a company like eCOGRA was needed to ensure that the industry had widely accepted and established guidelines for responsible business practices, and also to watch out for the rights of online gamblers. Online gambling is a new technology to the world in the last 10-12 years and as such laws and guidelines have been non-existent or insufficient. Online gambling companies operate largely outside the bounds and reach of federal governments around the world, making a group like eCOGRA vital in legitimizing the industry and helping ensure its future prosperity.
