The lottery industry is at a critical stage in its development. Deregulation and the power of the Internet make it more important than ever to control runaway gambling, and promote the role of state-licensed lotteries as generators of funds for good causes.
“Being certified by DNV gives Norsk Tipping an incentive to continuously work on security-related issues,” says Morten Schjelderup of Norsk Tipping, the Norwegian State Lottery company.
He adds, “I believe that the players are concerned about trust. A breach in security would mean a huge effort to restore confidence in our products.”
Norsk Tipping’s scope for their certificate is the development, design, marketing, sales, operation and support of lotteries. DNV certifies lottery companies to the WLA Security Control Standards© (see background article).
Security as a differentiator
National lotteries have always been working conscientiously with security. Following the growth in offshore companies, the lotteries are even more concerned – and are now demonstrating their security efforts to differentiate themselves in the market. Underlines Schjelderup, “We have seen many examples of security breaches, which have effectively ruined a very good brand name. When lotteries establish a cross-jurisdictional game like EuroMillion or Viking Lotto, a common basis for trust is crucial, because one security breach will affect everyone.”
Limiting addiction
Norsk Tipping has, for a number of years, carefully designed their products to limit the probability of players getting addicted to their games. This design – as well as betting limits, age limitation and information regarding problem gambling – has enabled them to provide good money for the beneficiaries without exposing their players to unhealthy gambling.
“We are concerned by the increased international competition, as well as new games with less focus on social responsibility,” says Schjelderup. “We are, however, very encouraged by all the European countries still wanting to control their national gaming industry, despite the tremendous pressure from big, international companies.”
He concludes, “In Norsk Tipping’s constant endeavour to ensure security and control, we have had a close cooperation with DNV. I am very pleased to have worked with such a professional organisation, and am certain we will have a close, mutually developing cooperation in many years to come.”
Why is a lottery security system important?
Certification to the World Lottery Association’s tailor-made security standards helps state-licensed lotteries demonstrate that the public can have trust and confidence in a lottery.
The World Lottery Association (WLA) represents state-owned lotteries from 74 countries on all five continents, with combined annual revenues in excess of US$ 103 billion.
By focusing on security systems, WLA wishes to underscore the importance of security and visibility in lottery procedures and operations.
DNV has entered into an agreement with WLA to act as certification body for the WLA Security Control Standards©.
Information security
Several lotteries have chosen to combine certification to WLA’s standards with the generic information security standard BS7799. The certificate proves that necessary precautions have been taken to protect sensitive information against unauthorised access and changes. Companies who are not members of WLA also have BS7799 as an option to measure and improve information security. The WLA’s standards are only open to WLA members.
Through a global network of local resources, DNV has certified lottery companies in Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Europe, and Asia.