The Netherlands Gambling Authority, known as the KSA, has announced it will take action against casinos shown to have ineffective Cruks self-exclusion monitoring.
The announcement follows an undercover investigation conducted by Dutch broadcaster PowNed, which exposed serious failings at multiple gambling venues across the country.
Cruks is the Netherlands’ official self-exclusion register, designed to prevent problem gamblers from accessing casinos and gaming halls.
The investigation revealed that fake identification documents were sufficient to bypass Cruks safeguards at certain venues, raising significant concerns about the integrity of the system.
A state-owned Holland Casino venue in Eindhoven is among three venues now under scrutiny from the Dutch gambling regulator following the broadcast.
Reporter Abel Bijlsma, who is himself registered in Cruks, carried out the undercover test by attempting to enter 10 casinos across the Netherlands using two different methods.
In five of those attempts, Bijlsma used his own driving licence and was denied entry at every venue, demonstrating that the system functions correctly when genuine identification is presented.
However, in the remaining five attempts where Bijlsma presented a colleague’s ID, three venues accepted the fraudulent identification and allowed him entry, all of which was captured on camera.
Alongside the Holland Casino property in Eindhoven, Bijlsma successfully gained entry to Jack’s Casino in Utrecht and Casino Be One in Rotterdam using his colleague’s identification.
The KSA responded firmly to the findings, stating: “It should not have happened that someone registered in Cruks enters an arcade using another person’s identification.”
The regulator further emphasised that “arcades and casinos are required to carry out thorough checks, and the KSA monitors this,” making clear that compliance obligations are non-negotiable.
In a statement, the KSA said it had “taken note of the investigation” and described the results as a “serious signal” warranting regulatory intervention.
The authority did note, however, that the findings suggest Cruks checks are effective under normal circumstances and only fail when fraud is actively committed by the individual attempting entry.
Minor political parties JA21 and BBB are now reportedly set to submit parliamentary questions on the matter, adding political pressure to the ongoing regulatory response.
