The Malaysia government is taking a tough stance on online casino gambling in the country and taking the brunt of the crackdown are the more than 241 licensed cybercafés. Cybercafés are very popular in Malaysia and while some are used for their intended purpose – for citizens to access the internet, others operate akin to gambling dens according to the Malaysian government and are allowing minors to access the online casinos. Malaysia is a northern state within Perak, and government officials in Perak are specifically warning the operators of Malaysian cybercafés to clean up their business and operate according to their license.

Online casino gambling is a controversial subject all over the world and because of the ability of minors to access the gambling sites in an unregulated and uncontrolled environment, the government is often forced to step in and force compliance. Such is the case in Malaysia, the Perak Cyber Centre Association and local authorities have issued a formal warning to the cybercafés that they have one month to cease activities related to the online casinos industry – after that point the operators will face swift legal action.

The underage gambling issue is a chief concern for officials, some of the cybercafés are exploiting minors through their online casino gambling offerings. The Chairman of the state’s Education, Local Government, Housing and Public Transport Committee, Nga Kor Ming, elaborated on the underage gambling problem. He notes, “...there are some black sheep [cybercafés] that even give loans to students and charge them loan shark interest. We want to tell such cyber cafe operators that we are going to close them down immediately. No compromises and no appeals.”

The one-month notice is already in effect and the cybercafé owners and operators are already beginning to clean up their act on threat of major action from the government.