A forum on illegal online gambling and enforcement brought together regulators and judicial authorities at the Facultad de Ciencias Económicas of the Universidad Nacional de La Plata (UNLP), as part of the “Activa las Alertas” (Activate the alarms) cycle organized by Fundación Nexum.
Titled “Regulation of Gambling, Illegal Betting and the Role of Justice”, the event featured the president of Buenos Aires Province’s gaming regulator, Gonzalo Atanasof, alongside the judge, Agustín Crispo, and three prosecutors, Carmen Ibarra, Patricio Ferrari and Virginia Bravo to discuss coordinated action against the illegal market.
It was opened by Pablo Carrera, president of Fundación Nexum, and moderated by Raúl Dalto, judge of the Cámara Penal de La Plata, and drew around 200 attendees.
Atanasof said: "It is through this path that we must act: united, among the three branches of the State and in a coordinated manner, to attack these criminal structures and continue taking down illegal sites."
He added: "We face an enormous challenge ahead, because the crime of illegal online gambling has a complex web, which can include terminals abroad. But, beyond the fact that it may seem like an uncontainable problem, it is worth fighting.
“Because not everything is the same: children cannot gamble, influencers cannot promote illegal sites and cashiers cannot keep operating these fraudulent pages."
Ibarra, Prosecutor for the Juvenile Criminal Responsibility Court, said: "Promoting spaces for exchange and education is the best path to address the issue responsibly."
Her presentation centered on the regulatory framework around gambling addiction in children and adolescents, a population the forum identified as particularly exposed given the combination of accessible platforms and limited legal awareness.
Ferrari, Prosecutor of San Isidro, said: "Today crime is not only on the streets, it is also on screens. It is necessary to pursue it in the digital sphere."
He also addressed the role of influencers in illegal gambling promotion and the measures being implemented to curb their participation in unlicensed campaigns, a dimension of the problem that regulators have flagged as increasingly central to how illegal operators recruit users.
Bravo, Prosecutor of La Plata, said: "Beyond a regulatory framework, we need tools and training: it is essential to advance in specialization to guarantee greater transparency and efficiency in investigations."
Crispo, Guarantees Judge of La Plata, said: "This is an issue that concerns me especially as a father. There is great ease of access and a great lack of knowledge: young people do not know they are engaging in an illegal activity, nor do they understand the legal responsibilities and consequences of their actions."
The campaign is an awareness cycle launched in 2025 by Fundación Nexum and the Universidad Nacional de La Plata to coordinate prevention and enforcement against illegal gambling, with a focus on youth and digital channels
