In June, an investigation was launched in Kazakhstan’s capital, Almaty, against two residents of the city who were gambling on live TikTok broadcasts. This is not the first incident of this kind in a country with a current ban on gambling advertising. Often, viewers of such broadcasts are offered the opportunity to play for real money in card games, online roulette, or bet on an event.
The primary audience for gambling on TikTok is young users, which emphasises a worrying social trend. The most active internet audience is at risk, which is actively exploited by the shadow gambling business.
High-profile arrests for gambling broadcasts on TikTok
According to the Agency for Financial Monitoring of Kazakhstan (AFM), in the case of residents of the capital, the investigation found that the suspects regularly organised live broadcasts, during which they conducted gambling games. The organisers of the broadcasts transferred funds via banking applications to anonymous accounts. The total amount of income, in this case, totaled 10.5 million tenges (€16,800). The court found both participants guilty of organising an illegal gambling business. They received sentences of 1.5 and 2.5 years in prison.
Earlier in Kazakhstan, four organisers of gambling broadcasts on TikTok were sentenced to four years in prison. This happened in the summer of 2023 when the AFM recorded 177 accounts promoting online gambling. At that time, eight criminal cases were registered against 10 individuals. Four people received four years of imprisonment each, and two received one and a half years each.
Kazakhstan’s fight against illegal gambling
Commenting on the scale of shadow gambling, the AFM of Kazakhstan reported more than 1,100 cases filed since 2019 for illegal gambling. There has been a significant increase in the number of gambling broadcasts on TikTok in 2025, especially among those aged between 18 and 39. To date, 177 accounts have been identified, receiving thousands of views daily. Some of the owners have received prison sentences, but most of the organisers are abroad.
The Association for the Protection of Citizens’ Rights in the Gambling Business stated that in 2024, Kazakhstani citizens lost approximately 400 million tenge (€640,000) to illegal online casinos. The organisation advocates for the transparent regulation of the gambling industry and suggests the following ways to address the problem: blocking content with signs of gambling or partial legalisation with strict regulation.
In turn, officials demand the removal of accounts promoting online casinos. The Ministry of Culture and Information of Kazakhstan regularly sends requests to TikTok’s administration to block accounts and publications, as well as carry out blocking on its own. Officials believe these measures are insufficient: ”There are dozens of times more content created than we remove,” Kanat Iskakov, vice minister of culture and information, told Informburo.kz.
Radical measures may be introduced in the fight against shadow gambling: last year, the Ministry of Culture of Kazakhstan expressed its intention to restrict access to TikTok on the territory of Kazakhstan.
Cyber Surveillance system
AFM searches for illegal content on news sites, blogs, and social network accounts using IT tools. Together with the Committee of Information and the network’s owner, the association has implemented AI algorithms to block the airing of illegal content promptly. This monitoring system, created in 2019, is called Cyber Surveillance. It also automatically blocks accounts that broadcast gambling for residents of Kazakhstan.
In addition, in 2023, the algorithm for blocking ‘mirror’ sites created by online casinos was simplified. Now, the blocking period in the Cyber Surveillance system is one day.
In conclusion
The problem of TikTok-casinos in Kazakhstan demonstrates how social networks can be used to circumvent legislation, involving an active Internet audience in gambling. Court verdicts, account deletions, and the introduction of the Cyber Surveillance system are all evidence of Kazakhstan’s determination in the fight against shadow gambling. However, the rapid spread of gambling on social media suggests the need for legal changes. Kazakhstan will need to revise its gambling regulation policy in favour of either increased blocking or stricter legalisation, with enhanced controls.
This article was first published in Russian on 27 June 2025.
