FBI investigators have visited Second Life’s Internet casinos at the invitation of the virtual world’s creator Linden Lab, but the U.S. government has not decided on the legality of virtual gambling.
The surge in Second Life gambling coincides with a crackdown in the real world by the U.S. government, which has arrested executives from offshore gambling Web sites.
Most lawyers agree that placing bets with Linden dollars likely violates U.S. anti-gambling statutes, which cover circumstances in which “something of value” is wagered. But the degree of Linden Lab’s responsibility, and the likelihood of a any crackdown, is uncertain.
Linden Lab could potentially face criminal charges under the 1970 Illegal Gambling Business Act or the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act. The latter law, passed last year, takes aim at credit card companies and other electronic funds transfers that enable Internet gambling.
Ahh, morality, morality. Let’s find a few more niches online requiring investigation and legislation.
Ah come on, it is nothing to do with morality. It is everything to do with the big casinos not wanting competition, and paying politicians to make it go away.
So are they going to use little Barney Fife avatars to do the bust in second life
with all the illegal things going on in this country ( murder , rape , robbery )you think they could find something a little more meaningful to do
#2 – I was gonna ask a very similar and similarly smarmy question.
I like the idea of virtual agents raiding the virtual casino.
2, 3 – Yeah, and sending the miscreants to virtual jail. This could go on all day, but what the hell is the FBI out to prove?
#4 – That they are simply taxpayer funded tools of greedy corporate interests?
Well, actually, it isn’t fair to blame the FBI. They have a job to do which is the enforcement of Federal law. So I guess they are really proving that the Federal government is a taxpayer funded tool of greedy corporate interests.
Concerns.
Is money being exchanged.
Is money being launderd.
Who is doing the Casino’s??
remedy.
If Virt money is being used, and no REAL money is being used, There is NOTHIng to STOP.
Here’s a question. Placed plurely to start a debate and not meant to cause offence:
What happens if your teenage daughter gets “virtually” sexually asualted by a male teenage “player” in the game? Do the police intervene or not?