The November figures
The Gambling Commission’s November 2026 dashboard identified 586 illegal gambling websites that were accessible to consumers in Great Britain during September. Its survey estimate indicated that 0.6% of respondents had used an identified illegal site during the previous four weeks, while a further 0.4% reported use during the previous year.
The dashboard also recorded disruption action against 311 websites in the second quarter of 2026/27. Among disrupted sites for which sufficient traffic data was available, 77% showed a reduction in estimated traffic afterwards. The figures provide a view of scale and response, but they do not create a complete register of every unlicensed site.
How the data should be read
Illegal gambling is a hidden market, so the Commission combines several indicators rather than relying on one perfect count. Website monitoring can identify domains and estimated traffic, while survey evidence can show reported behaviour. Both have limitations: domains appear and disappear, traffic tools are estimates, and survey answers depend on recognition and recall.
A fall in estimated traffic after an intervention is useful evidence of disruption, but it cannot prove that every visitor stopped gambling. Some users may move to another domain or channel. For that reason, the dashboard is best read as a trend report rather than an exact census.
What the dashboard does not tell you
The data does not rate the service quality of an individual casino and does not establish that every overseas casino is illegal in every country. Great Britain has its own licensing rules, while an operator may hold a licence elsewhere. The relevant question for a UK reader is whether the company and exact domain are authorised to transact with consumers in Great Britain.
Nor does a high level of web traffic demonstrate reliability. Popularity can be driven by advertising, affiliate exposure or a large bonus. Ownership, withdrawal terms, verification, complaints and payment availability still need to be checked separately.
How we use the dashboard
We use the regulator’s research to explain changes in search visibility, access and payment availability across the market. It can also help identify areas that require closer monitoring, such as replacement domains or sudden changes to a cashier. It is not used as a shortcut for assigning a score to an unnamed operator.
An individual review is updated only when the evidence can be connected to that brand. This keeps market statistics, regulator action and casino-specific findings in separate parts of the record and avoids turning a broad dashboard into an unsupported allegation. The publication date is retained so later dashboard editions can be compared without silently replacing the earlier context.