• Entrust and PlaySafe ID announce a new partnership to enhance online gaming safety.

• Integration of Entrust Identity Verification solution provides seamless and secure Know Your Customer check.

• Playsafe ID platform aims to combat cheating, bots and harmful behaviour, while supporting compliance with the UK Online Safety Act’s Protection of Children Codes.

Entrust, a global leader in identity-centric security solutions, today announced a partnership with PlaySafe ID, the platform that keeps cheaters, bots, and predators out of games. The partnership will power Playsafe ID’s secure onboarding and verification process using Entrust Identity Verification to enable seamless and secure onboarding experience for gamers worldwide.

Built with a privacy-first mindset, Playsafe ID issues a verified, game-agnostic digital ID that confirms the human identity behind the account promoting accountability and improved protection for users, while still allowing them to remain anonymised. The platform aims to address wider issues that erode trust and enjoyment in online gaming communities, such as cheating, hacking, bot activity, and inappropriate behaviour, while ensuring compliance with evolving regulations such as the UK’s Online Safety Act.

How It Works

Users create a Playsafe ID account and complete a quick and secure identity verification process powered by Entrust. Users simply take a photo of their government-issued ID and a short video selfie. Entrust identity verification first checks that the ID is genuine and not fraudulent and then matches it to the user’s face in the selfie video. This ensures the person presenting the identity is its legitimate owner and is physically present, mitigating identity fraud attempts such as stolen ID or deepfakes.

Once verified, users receive a unique, random, and anonymised PlaySafe ID, granting access to PlaySafe-protected gaming and matchmaking with other verified gamers. The verification data is kept separate from the Playsafe ID, ensuring gamers remain anonymised during gameplay while knowing they are engaging with other legitimate, verified players.

“Gaming should be fun, fair, and safe for everyone,” said Andrew Wailes, CEO of PlaySafe ID. “Our partnership with Entrust ensures that our user verification process is both secure and scalable, and also aligns with the values of frictionless user experience and privacy. Their technology will be instrumental in helping us build a future where fair play is the standard, and cheating, fraud and harmful behaviour are no longer tolerated.”

Regulation in Gaming

This partnership will enable game providers and developers to prepare for the inbound Protection of Children Codes, coming into force in July 2025 as part of the Online Safety Act, which mandates that services accessed by children must manage risks and protect children from encountering harmful content.

“We’re proud to join PlaySafe ID in their mission to make online gaming a safer place,” said Samuel Steg, Head of Compliance for Identity Verification at Entrust. “Fraudulent activity online continues to grow both in scope and sophistication, and gaming environments are no exception. Our identity verification technology provides robust, high-assurance Know Your Customer (KYC) checks, offering gamers a seamless and secure onboarding experience. This partnership reflects our shared commitment to building a safer digital future and promoting trust, fairness, and safety within digital spaces.”

PlaySafe ID is currently in integration discussions with several major gaming platforms, with the first partnerships expected to launch later this year.

Vixio, a leading provider of regulatory intelligence solutions, is proud to announce that it has partnered with leading gaming supplier Hacksaw Gaming to strengthen its regulatory compliance processes amid increasing scrutiny from global gambling authorities, amid increased global focus on industry standards and practices

Faced with the challenge of tracking and interpreting evolving technical requirements across multiple jurisdictions, Hacksaw Gaming has adopted Vixio’s Technical Compliance Tool to navigate an increasingly demanding compliance landscape for B2B suppliers.

The Technical Compliance Tool is the first of its kind to offer a one-stop solution for navigating technical requirements for gambling operators and suppliers. Vixio analysts monitor over 200 regulatory sources and have tracked 43 regulatory updates across global critical jurisdictions for technical compliance since September 2024.

“Prior to using the Vixio Technical Compliance tool, we had an internal database… it would take three to five hours a week to ensure everything was updated and go through multiple sheets and resources to ensure the changes. But, now [with Vixio’s Technical Compliance Tool], it takes just a couple of minutes,” said Gabriel Fenech, CTO, Hacksaw Gaming. “Now we use those resources for other day-to-day matters.”

The Technical Compliance Tool offers a centralised, regularly updated source of information on technical requirements for regulated gambling markets, helping B2B suppliers like Hacksaw Gaming ensure timely, accurate compliance without the manual burden. Since launch, Vixio has added over 3,500 unique resources where the regulations for technical compliance are referenced. Earlier this year, the product was also expanded to include infosecurity requirements.

Commenting on the partnership, Roger Cowin, Technical Compliance Specialist, Vixio, said: “As the regulatory landscape becomes more complex, it’s critical for suppliers to have reliable, up-to-date information at their fingertips. Our mission is to empower firms like Hacksaw to navigate regulatory challenges with clarity and precision.”

The benefits of implementing the Vixio Technical Compliance Tool were immediate and far-reaching, with Fenech explicitly calling out the following:

• Efficiency gains: “We would carry out all of this research manually… now everything is in one place.”
• Easily compare jurisdictions: “The ease of comparing jurisdictions and having the main requirements per market so easily accessible is what makes it so attractive.”
• Quick references: “I really appreciate that there is a link to the actual regulation, so we can even check it ourselves and reference it, if need be.”
• Improved onboarding: “Some of my team members are still in training… the fact that they have the tool to refer to means they can analyse particular requirements themselves, and it’s just more efficient for the whole team.”
• Confidence in expansion: “This will also make upcoming market entries much easier, and I foresee there will be quite a few in the coming years.”
• Customer support: “I had some questions about upcoming regulations in Spain… I got replies really quickly, and the replies were all very detailed.”

The partnership reflects a growing need for intelligent compliance solutions as gaming suppliers expand into new and increasingly regulated markets. By integrating Vixio’s platform, Hacksaw Gaming is not only enhancing its internal processes but also reinforcing its commitment to responsible and compliant operations.

Executives of tech giants Meta and Google did not depose before the Enforcement Directorate of India (ED) on Monday and have now been given fresh summons for July 28 in a money laundering case linked to promotion of illegal online betting and gambling platforms.

The representatives of the two companies sought deferment of the July 21 summons, saying they need time to collect relevant information and documents before they present themselves for questioning and recording of their statements at the federal probe agency.

The executives have been given a one-week extension and asked to depose on July 28. Once they depose, their statements will be recorded under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

A Google spokesperson said that the company was “committed to keeping our platforms safe and secure, prohibiting the promotion of illegal gambling ads.”

“We are extending our full support and cooperation to investigating agencies to hold bad actors responsible and keep users safe,” the spokesperson said.

There was no response from Meta.

The federal agency is probing several platforms allegedly hosting illegal betting and gambling links, including instances of advertisements placed for them on various social media outlets and app stores.

The tech giants are understood to have been called by the ED to know how such illegal platforms can place ads on their portals.

Some actors, celebrities and sports persons are also under the scanner of the agency in these cases, and are expected to depose.

The ED has claimed illegal online betting and gambling platforms cheated people of their hard-earned money, and also laundered and evaded paying taxes of up to several crores of rupees.

Google said its “continuous AI advancements, complemented by human expertise, ensure all ads on our surfaces comply with local laws and our strict ad policies, and protect users from evolving threats.”

“Last year alone, we removed 247.4 million ads and suspended 2.9 million advertiser accounts in India,” the firm said.

The ED is investigating more than a dozen cases linked to illegal gambling and betting platforms across the country, including the Mahadev Online Book (MOB) app, whose main promoters hail from Chhattisgarh.