To avoid such downfalls you as a player must at all times remain vigilant when deciding to use a new gambling site, and make sure to check it out thoroughly. Discussion groups are fantastic for this, they really let you in on what's happening with various sites, so be sure to utilise them. Ask probing questions such as 'did you have any problems with their software?', 'Do they have a good customer service team?', and most importantly 'Did you get your payouts?'.

If you can't find anything about your site in the forums then enter the site name plus 'review' into a search engine, but again be wary ? they can write their own good reviews! Look for legitimate authors.

Another great way of determining their authenticity is to visit the Interactive Gaming Council (IGC) site. The IGC are a not-for-profit organisation who are very influential in the online gaming community, and reputable sites adhere to their guidelines and pay out $10,000 per year for the privilege of membership. Go to their site and do a member search ? this will let you know if the site has stolen the IGC logo to post on its home page.

If you think you have been scammed then the first thing to do is stop making deposits immediately, and attempt to cash out. Call your bank if you were using a credit or debit card directly with the site and tell them that you have been the victim of a suspected internet fraud. If you were using one of the internet banking systems such as Firepay or NETeller then remove your funds from the account. If the cashout is unsuccessful then contact the customer service centre of the gambling site and recontact them if you don't hear back from them within 24 hours. If you don't hear from them within 30 days contact them again asking how you can settle the dispute. As you are more than likely at this point the definite victim of an online gambling scam contact the IGC or eCOGRA to see if they can offer you any assistance in trying to settle the dispute. Hope for the best, but if unsuccessful let others know of your experience on forums and Web portals ? you would like if it happened to someone else that they let you know, right?

Learn from your mistakes, be wary of offers that seem too good to be true, and always try and use genuine gambling sites.