Why Betting Apps Should Be Banned in Pakistan: A Social & Legal Perspective

Betting apps in Pakistan have become an alarming crisis that threatens the social, economic, and moral fabric of the nation. Despite being illegal under Pakistani law, these platforms continue to operate through digital loopholes, exploiting vulnerable citizens, particularly the youth. The National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency recently banned 46 online gambling apps, including popular names like 1xBet, Bet365, Dafabet, and 22Bet, yet the problem persists. These betting apps are not just violating legal frameworks but are also causing unprecedented financial drain, with billions of rupees leaving Pakistan monthly. The rise of digital payment systems has made it easier for offshore operators to target Pakistani users, turning online betting into a shadow economy. From an Islamic perspective, gambling is strictly forbidden, making these apps doubly problematic in a Muslim-majority nation. This article examines why betting apps should be banned in Pakistan from social, legal, religious, and economic angles, presenting compelling evidence that demands immediate and comprehensive action from authorities, communities, and individuals alike.

Understanding the Current Betting Apps Crisis in Pakistan

The Scale of Illegal Online Gambling

The gambling apps banned in Pakistan represent only a fraction of the platforms operating illegally in the country. According to the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency, 46 apps have been banned after investigations revealed they were not only promoting gambling but also harvesting users’ personal data and mobile numbers without consent. These platforms include household names in the betting industry that have gained massive popularity across South Asia despite operating without any legal authorization in Pakistan.

The banned betting apps in Pakistan include:

• 1xBet (international betting platform)
• Bet365 (popular sports betting site)
• Dafabet (Asian-focused gambling app)
• 22Bet (multi-sport betting platform)
• Aviator Game (crash gambling game)
• Plinko (chance-based game)
• Rabona (casino and sports betting)
• 10Cric (cricket-focused betting)

What makes this situation particularly concerning is that gambling operators are exploiting loopholes in the digital payments ecosystem, using platforms like Easypaisa, JazzCash, and SadaPay to enable illegal betting transactions disguised as regular peer-to-peer or business transfers.

How Betting Apps Operate Illegally in Pakistan

Online gambling in Pakistan operates in a legal grey area where offshore operators target Pakistani users through sophisticated digital strategies. These betting apps use several tactics to bypass restrictions:

1. VPN Technology: Users access blocked sites through virtual private networks
2. Mirror Websites: Operators create multiple backup domains
3. Digital Payment Integration: Disguising gambling transactions as regular payments
4. Social Media Marketing: Aggressive promotion through influencers
5. Localized Content: Urdu language interfaces and cricket betting options

The ease of access combined with sophisticated marketing makes these gambling apps particularly dangerous for vulnerable populations, especially young people who are digitally savvy but lack awareness about the risks.

The Devastating Social Impact of Betting Apps

Youth Addiction and Behavioral Changes

The impact of betting apps on Pakistani youth has reached crisis levels. Research on gaming and gambling addiction in Pakistan shows alarming trends. Studies showed high prevalence rates of Internet Gaming Disorder (IGD) among adolescents, significantly impacting their mental and physical health.

Warning signs of gambling addiction in youth include:

• Sudden behavioral changes and increased secrecy
• Mood swings, irritability, or withdrawal from family
• Declining academic performance
• Loss of interest in previously enjoyed activities
• Financial irregularities and unexplained expenses
• Sleep disturbances and mental health issues

The psychological toll extends beyond immediate behavioral changes. Young gamblers often experience depression, anxiety, and a distorted relationship with money. The thrill-seeking nature of online betting hijacks the reward centers in developing adolescent brains, making addiction more likely and recovery more difficult.

The Influencer Marketing Problem

Social media influencers have been identified as promoting betting apps, with their promotional videos and social media posts encouraging users to sign up for betting, often framing it as “easy money” or “fun challenges”. High-profile YouTubers and content creators have been implicated in promoting betting apps in Pakistan, lending credibility to these illegal platforms and normalizing gambling behavior among their young followers.

This influencer-driven marketing is particularly insidious because it:

• Targets impressionable youth through trusted figures
• Presents gambling as entertainment rather than risk
• Downplays the addictive nature and financial dangers
• Creates social pressure to participate
• Normalizes illegal activity

The recent arrest of YouTuber Ducky Bhai, who allegedly promoted unlicensed gambling platforms and acted as a country manager for Binomo, highlights the serious nature of influencer involvement in this crisis.

Family and Community Breakdown

Online gambling destroys more than individual lives. It systematically dismantles family structures and community bonds. Families of gambling addicts report:

• Financial devastation: Life savings lost in hours
• Trust erosion: Lies and secrecy poison relationships
• Domestic conflict: Increased arguments and violence
• Child neglect: Parents preoccupied with gambling
• Social isolation: Withdrawal from community activities

The ripple effects extend into communities where gambling becomes normalized. Traditional Pakistani values of hard work, honesty, and communal support get replaced by get-rich-quick mentalities, zero-sum thinking, and social fragmentation.

The Economic Drain on Pakistan

Billions Flowing Out Monthly

Officials estimate that billions of rupees are being funneled out of Pakistan every month through these platforms, a shadow economy that not only undermines the nation’s financial stability but also fuels addiction among vulnerable citizens.

This economic hemorrhaging represents:

• Foreign exchange loss: Valuable rupees converted to foreign currencies
• Untaxed transactions: Zero government revenue from billions in bets
• Money laundering risks: Unregulated platforms facilitate money laundering and financial fraud on a massive scale
• Reduced consumer spending: Money diverted from legitimate economy
• Opportunity cost: Capital leaving productive investments

For a developing nation like Pakistan facing economic challenges, this capital flight is particularly damaging. Every rupee gambled away is a rupee that could have been invested in education, healthcare, business development, or infrastructure.

Exploitation Through Data Harvesting

Beyond financial extraction, betting apps engage in aggressive data harvesting. These apps access users’ personal data, mobile device identifiers and SIM card information without the user’s knowledge.

This stolen data enables:

• Identity theft: Personal information sold on dark web
• Financial fraud: Bank details compromised
• Privacy violations: Location and behavior tracking
• Targeted exploitation: Data used to hook vulnerable users
• Security threats: National security implications

The intersection of financial crime and cyber exploitation makes gambling apps a multidimensional threat requiring comprehensive response.

Islamic Perspective: Why Gambling is Haram

Quranic Prohibition of Maisir

In Islam, gambling, known as maisir or qimar, is categorically forbidden. Maisir is totally prohibited by Islamic law on the grounds that “the agreement between participants is based on immoral inducement provided by entirely wishful hopes in the participants’ minds that they will gain by mere chance, with no consideration for the possibility of loss”.

Key Quranic verses on gambling:

The Quran addresses gambling explicitly: “They ask you about wine and gambling. Say: ‘In them both lies grave sin, though some benefit, to mankind. But their sin is more grave than their benefit.'” (Quran 2:219)

More emphatically: “O believers, wine and gambling, idols and divining arrows are an abomination, the work of Satan. So keep away from it, that you may prevail.” (Quran 5:90)

The following verse explains why: “Satan only desires to arouse discord and hatred among you with wine and gambling, and to deter you from the mention of God and from prayer. Will you desist?” (Quran 5:91)

These verses establish gambling not as a minor sin but as satanic work that Muslims must completely avoid. The comparison to idolatry underscores the severity of this prohibition.

The Wisdom Behind the Islamic Ban

Islamic scholars explain that gambling is prohibited because it:

Violates Property Rights: Winners acquire wealth without fair exchange or effort, while losers lose property without just compensation. Islam emphasizes that property is sacred and can only be transferred through lawful exchange, gift, or inheritance.

Creates Enmity: Gambling naturally breeds hatred between participants. Winners gloat while losers feel resentment, destroying social harmony.

Encourages Laziness: The possibility of easy wealth undermines the Islamic work ethic and destroys productive engagement with society.

Leads to Addiction: Like intoxicants, gambling creates compulsive behavior that overtakes rational decision-making and religious obligations.

Destroys Families: Resources that should support wives, children, and dependents get squandered on chance, violating family responsibilities.

For Pakistan, an Islamic Republic, the prevalence of betting apps represents not just a legal violation but a fundamental contradiction of the nation’s founding principles and the religious values of its people.

Legal Framework: Why Betting Apps Are Illegal

The Public Gambling Act of 1867

Pakistan’s primary gambling legislation is the Public Gambling Act of 1867, inherited from British colonial law. This legislation criminalizes both operating a gambling house and participating in betting activities, with penalties ranging from fines to short-term imprisonment.

While this law was written in the pre-internet era, its principles clearly apply to online gambling. Any platform facilitating betting, whether physical or digital, falls under this prohibition.

Modern Cybercrime Laws (PECA 2016)

The Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA) 2016 provides modern legal tools to combat online betting. This law empowers the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) to block access to illegal gambling websites and apps. It also enables the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) to investigate and prosecute individuals and organizations facilitating online gambling in Pakistan.

Recent court cases have invoked PECA 2016 alongside older gambling laws. A petition before the Islamabad High Court seeks to ban gambling applications, citing violations of the Public Gambling Act, 1867, Pakistan Penal Code, and Anti-Money Laundering Act, 2010.

Constitutional Provisions

Pakistan’s Constitution contains several provisions relevant to the gambling ban:

• Article 227: Ensures all laws comply with Islamic injunctions
• Article 2-A: Makes Quranic principles supreme law
• Article 3: Protects moral values of society
• Article 37(g): Directs state to prevent social evils

These constitutional mandates create a clear legal obligation for the state to ban and prevent gambling apps from operating in Pakistan.

Enforcement Challenges

Despite clear legal prohibitions, enforcement remains inadequate. Challenges include:

Jurisdictional Issues: Offshore operators beyond Pakistani legal reach

Technical Sophistication: Apps using encryption, VPNs, and mirror sites

Payment System Vulnerabilities: Digital wallets enabling disguised transactions

Resource Constraints: Limited cybercrime investigation capacity

Corruption: Possible protection of gambling operations

Public Awareness: Many users unaware of illegality

Strengthening enforcement requires technological investment, international cooperation, public education, and political will.

Privacy and Security Threats

Data Harvesting Operations

Betting apps function as sophisticated data collection machines. Beyond taking users’ money, they harvest valuable personal information that can be exploited in multiple ways. The NCCIA’s investigation revealed that many banned apps were systematically collecting:

• Biometric data: Facial recognition from selfie verification
• Financial information: Bank accounts, card details, transaction history
• Contact lists: Friends and family contacts for targeted marketing
• Location data: Real-time GPS tracking
• Behavioral patterns: Betting habits, time spent, preferences
• Device information: Phone model, installed apps, unique identifiers

This comprehensive data harvesting enables gambling platforms to create detailed user profiles that maximize addiction potential and extraction efficiency.

Identity Theft and Financial Fraud

Personal data stolen through betting apps feeds into broader cybercrime ecosystems. Users report:

• Unauthorized transactions on bank accounts
• Fraudulent loan applications in their names
• SIM card cloning and mobile account takeovers
• Extortion attempts using personal information
• Phishing attacks targeting contacts
• Credit score damage from identity theft

The convergence of gambling addiction and identity theft creates a devastating double blow where victims lose money both to betting and subsequent fraud.

National Security Implications

Beyond individual harm, widespread data harvesting by gambling apps poses national security risks:

Foreign Intelligence: Offshore operators may share data with foreign intelligence agencies

Social Mapping: Detailed behavioral data enables social engineering and manipulation

Financial Surveillance: Transaction patterns reveal economic weaknesses

Influence Operations: Addicted individuals vulnerable to coercion and recruitment

Infrastructure Risk: Data on Pakistani financial and telecom systems

Pakistan’s intelligence and security agencies should recognize betting apps as potential national security threats deserving comprehensive countermeasures.

Why a Complete Ban is Necessary

Regulation is Not a Viable Alternative

Some argue for regulating online gambling rather than banning it. This approach fails for Pakistan because:

Religious Incompatibility: Cannot regulate what Islam categorically forbids in an Islamic Republic

Normalization Effect: Legal gambling legitimizes and expands harmful behavior

Youth Access: Difficult to prevent underage gambling online regardless of regulations

Enforcement Burden: Regulation requires massive bureaucratic and technological investment

Revenue Trap: Tax revenue from gambling represents profits from social harm

International Experience: Countries with legalized gambling still face addiction epidemics

Moral Hazard: Government becomes financially dependent on citizens’ losses

A complete ban on betting apps aligned with Islamic values, legal framework, and social welfare is the only appropriate response.

Comprehensive Ban Implementation Strategy

An effective betting ban requires multi-pronged approach:

Legislative Action

• Strengthen PECA with specific anti-gambling provisions
• Increase penalties for operators and promoters
• Create clear liability for payment processors
• Establish specialized gambling crime courts

Technological Measures

• Advanced website and app blocking systems
• Deep packet inspection for VPN-based access
• Cooperation with international internet authorities
• Blockchain analysis for cryptocurrency betting
• AI-powered identification of new gambling platforms

Financial System Lockdown

• Require payment processors to detect gambling transactions
• Mandate banks to freeze accounts linked to betting apps
• Implement transaction monitoring systems
• Coordinate with State Bank of Pakistan on enforcement

Public Education Campaign

• School programs on gambling dangers
• Mosque-based awareness initiatives
• Celebrity and influencer counter-messaging
• Media campaigns highlighting victim stories
• Financial literacy programs emphasizing halal earning

Treatment and Recovery

• Establish gambling addiction treatment centers
• Train mental health professionals
• Create support groups for affected families
• Develop online resources for recovery
• Implement research programs on addiction patterns

International Lessons and Best Practices

Successful Gambling Bans Globally

Several countries have implemented successful gambling bans that Pakistan can learn from:

United Arab Emirates: Strict prohibition backed by cultural consensus and effective enforcement. UAE combines advanced technological blocking with severe legal penalties and public awareness campaigns.

Brunei: Comprehensive ban aligned with Islamic values. Brunei demonstrates that Muslim-majority nations can effectively eliminate gambling through consistent application of Sharia principles.

Cambodia: After years of legal gambling causing social problems, Cambodia has moved toward restrictions, showing that even nations with gambling history can reverse course when harms become apparent.

China: Strict bans on most gambling with limited exceptions. China’s approach includes blocking foreign gambling sites, criminalizing illegal operations, and targeting Chinese citizens who gamble abroad.

Regional Cooperation Needed

Betting apps operate across borders, requiring regional coordination:

• SAARC cooperation: Joint South Asian approach to online gambling
• OIC collaboration: Islamic nations sharing enforcement strategies
• Interpol engagement: International pursuit of gambling operators
• Payment system alignment: Regional standards for transaction monitoring
• Information sharing: Cross-border intelligence on gambling networks

Pakistan should take leadership in organizing regional responses to online gambling threats affecting multiple nations.

The Path Forward: Action Steps for All Stakeholders

Government and Regulatory Bodies

Immediate Actions:

1. Declare betting apps a national emergency requiring coordinated response
2. Allocate dedicated budget for anti-gambling enforcement
3. Establish inter-agency task force (PTA, FIA, NCCIA, SBP, PEMRA)
4. Fast-track pending gambling-related court cases
5. Implement advanced blocking technology for gambling sites

Medium-term Actions:

1. Pass comprehensive anti-gambling legislation
2. Create specialized cybercrime units focused on gambling
3. Establish gambling addiction treatment infrastructure
4. Launch nationwide public awareness campaign
5. Develop international cooperation agreements

Long-term Actions:

1. Integrate anti-gambling education into school curricula
2. Create sustainable funding for treatment and prevention
3. Build research capacity on gambling impacts in Pakistan
4. Establish monitoring systems for emerging gambling technologies
5. Develop model Islamic alternatives for entertainment and risk-taking

Parents and Educators

Parents must:

• Monitor children’s digital activity without invading privacy
• Discuss gambling dangers openly and age-appropriately
• Model halal earning and responsible money management
• Watch for warning signs of gambling behavior
• Seek help immediately if gambling addiction suspected
• Control access to digital payment systems
• Build strong family relationships that prevent escapism

Educators should:

• Include gambling awareness in life skills curricula
• Train staff to recognize gambling addiction signs
• Create school policies on gambling discussion
• Partner with parents on digital safety
• Invite recovering addicts to share experiences
• Emphasize Islamic values around earning and spending
• Provide resources for affected students

Community and Religious Leaders

Mosques and Islamic institutions can:

• Deliver Friday sermons explicitly condemning online gambling
• Provide counseling for gambling addicts and families
• Create youth programs offering halal alternatives
• Partner with schools on education initiatives
• Establish support groups for recovery
• Emphasize Quranic teachings on property rights
• Counter the “easy money” narrative with Islamic work ethic

Community organizations should:

• Create awareness campaigns in local languages
• Establish helplines for gambling addiction
• Organize community events promoting healthy recreation
• Support families affected by gambling
• Advocate for stronger government action
• Monitor and report illegal gambling promotions
• Build networks connecting addicts with treatment

Digital Payment Providers

Companies like Easypaisa, JazzCash, and SadaPay must:

• Implement sophisticated transaction monitoring systems
• Flag and block gambling-related payments
• Cooperate fully with law enforcement investigations
• Educate users about prohibited transactions
• Refuse partnerships with gambling operators
• Share intelligence with regulatory authorities
• Face penalties for facilitating illegal gambling

These payment platforms have inadvertently enabled the betting apps crisis and bear responsibility for being part of the solution.

Individual Responsibility

Citizens must:

Protect Yourself:

• Never download or use betting apps
• Report gambling promotions to authorities
• Educate family members about risks
• Monitor your own digital payment accounts
• Use strong passwords and enable security features
• Question “get rich quick” schemes

Help Others:

• Support friends and family struggling with gambling
• Share information about the dangers of betting apps
• Counter pro-gambling narratives on social media
• Volunteer with addiction support organizations
• Be patient and compassionate with addicts
• Recognize addiction as disease, not moral failure

Advocate for Change:

• Contact elected representatives demanding action
• Sign petitions supporting gambling bans
• Participate in public consultations
• Use social media to raise awareness
• Support organizations fighting online gambling
• Vote for candidates committed to enforcement

Conclusion

The betting apps crisis in Pakistan demands immediate, comprehensive, and sustained action. These platforms violate Pakistani law, Islamic principles, and basic human welfare. They drain billions from the economy, harvest personal data, destroy families, and addict vulnerable youth. The recent banning of 46 apps by NCCIA represents a positive step, but much more is needed. A complete ban on betting apps backed by technological enforcement, legal prosecution, financial system controls, and public education offers the only viable solution. From Islamic injunctions against maisir to the legal framework of the Public Gambling Act and constitutional provisions protecting moral values, Pakistan has every religious, legal, and social reason to eliminate online gambling. The path forward requires coordinated action from government agencies, civil society, religious institutions, educational bodies, payment providers, and individual citizens. Pakistan must protect its youth, preserve its values, and build a society based on honest work and lawful earning rather than exploitation and chance. The question is not whether betting apps should be banned in Pakistan, but how quickly and effectively we can implement this ban to stop the ongoing damage to our nation.