FBI investigating the legality of gambling in Second Life

FBI investigating the legality of gambling in Second Life

Linden Lab have said that the FBI investigators have visited the casinos located on their Second Life online virtual world but have yet not decided whether they are legal or not.

Ginsu Yoon, representative of Linden Labs said in a statement: “We have invited the FBI several times to take a look around in Second Life and raise any concerns they would like, and we know of at least one instance that federal agents did look around in a virtual casino.”

He added that the company is now looking into the virtual gaming activity in Second Life and are seeking rules from U.S. authorities related to online gambling in a virtual world.

Experts have claimed that placing bets with Linden dollars likely violates U.S. anti-gambling statutes. However, whether Linden Lab can be held accountable for that is not clear.

Sean Kane, a lawyer at New York’s Drakeford & Kane added: “What they did was go after the processors, and made it a crime to process payments that relate to online gambling sites. Linden could potentially be held as the same sort of processor. If you’re buying money on the Lindex and utilizing it for gambling purposes, Linden could have a much higher level of responsibility. If they would be found in violation, that’s difficult to say, but I can see a much stronger case being made.”