The seduction of winning extra money on the side and the opportunity to play poker games for free are among the reasons to push people to register at the poker sites. These members hope to qualify for a poker tournament and why not become one of the great poker players in the world.
Nonetheless, due to the incredible popularity of this card game, the study found that half of the poker players had one or more problems associated with gambling. And the poker players were the most likely to develop severe gambling-related problems including physical or mental health problems. That is the reason why several self-exclusion schemes were launched to help the players as well as to promote responsible gambling.
The self-exclusion programs have now become compulsory among the British gambling operators and the players who feel develop gambling-related problems are required to register on these schemes. Therefore, for the players who want to block access to poker sites, here are the schemes and simple processes that they have to follow.
Blocking Poker Sites with GamStop
When it comes to gambling self-exclusion schemes, GamStop is one of the well-known names. Its popularity is not only for the services it provides but also for the UK regulation that requires all the licensed gambling operators to participate in this program. Launched in 2018, this solution prevents players who want to avoid gambling problems by excluding themselves from using gambling platforms including poker sites.
With GamStop, the players are asked to register and after the confirmation, they will be banned from their chosen poker sites over a set period; for 6 months, 1 year, or 5 years. To sign up, the players have to supply more details that confirm their identity. This can include the date of birth, e-mail address, and postcode. These gamblers must register their true identities as registering to another identity is forbidden.
After the registration, they will receive an email resuming all the details of the terms regarding the prohibition that can take within 24 hours. They can’t have access to the online poker rooms, except non GamStop poker sites until the period has expired after the confirmation. Once this ban has elapsed, the players can contact Gamstop to cancel their self-exclusion and when this is approved, they are allowed to play poker at the websites again.
Blocking Poker Sites with BetBlocker
Another app developed to block the online poker room is BetBlocker. To use this scheme, the interested players are asked to download the app on their Android, iOS, Windows, Mac, and Linux. Once this is installed, they can choose the period of time they want to be prohibited. Furthermore, the organisation behind BetBlocker has announced a new feature to make the blocking process easier for people.
In fact, gamblers who want to be banned from gambling websites can use the calendaring function. Since the BetBlocker software prohibits players from gambling websites, they will be banned from accessing online gambling sites of their choice. With this new calendaring feature, the users will be able to be more precise on their desired times.
For example, the players who feel like to get out of control on the weekends can use this new feature to prohibit themselves on just Friday through to Sunday. It is also the case for those who want to avoid gambling websites on business days.
Blocking Poker Sites with Gamban
Another solution for blocking poker sites is Gamban. This system was launched by GambleAware in 2015 and also works on android, iOS, Windows, and Mac OS. After registering for a Gamban account, this scheme requires the players to install an app on their device as it can support platforms like Android, iOS, Windows, and macOS.
After setting up the Virtual Private Network (VPN), they will be asked to approve a VPN connection request for their device. Then, they will be directed to the settings of their device and will see Gamban in the list and tap on it. When Gamban permission is confirmed, they can block themselves from accessing over 50,000 online gambling sites and apps. It should be mentioned that Gamban is effective in terms of protection so it is difficult to uninstall this self-exclusion program.
This website blocker is not, unfortunately, free since the interested players have to purchase a Gamban license before installing the app. Nevertheless, this scheme is reputed to be effective and comes with many packages that suit the players’ requirements.
