Italy seizes over €25 million in assets after alleged Gratta e Vinci scratchcard fraud in Rome

Italian authorities have uncovered a suspected fraud scheme involving Gratta e Vinci scratchcards, with the Guardia di Finanza seizing over €25 million ($27.98 million) in assets from five former employees of a gaming concessionaire. For payment and gaming operators, the interesting part is not the lottery brand itself but the access-control failure: prosecutors say privileged system access was used to identify winning tickets before they reached the public.

1. The investigation, conducted by the Guardia di Finanza this week, centers on five former employees of a gaming concessionaire. Authorities say the company itself is not accused, while the suspects allegedly exploited confidential credentials to access and manipulate gaming company servers.
2. According to La Stampa, the group allegedly identified four winning scratchcards in advance. Two tickets reportedly carried prizes of €7 million each, and the other two were worth €5 million apiece.
3. Prosecutors allege the suspects used that access to inspect or alter data, effectively bypassing the randomness built into the game. The suspected scheme then extended to friends and relatives, who allegedly bought the identified winning tickets from multiple retail outlets across Italy to obscure the trail.
4. The seizure covers 25 properties, numerous vehicles and various financial holdings linked to the suspects. The Guardia di Finanza said the move was meant to safeguard public finances and recover assets tied to the alleged damage.
5. The court will now decide whether to uphold, modify or lift the asset seizures while criminal and accounting investigations continue. The measure is intended to secure potential restitution for the financial damage attributed to the Italian Revenue Agency.

Italy’s gambling sector is already under pressure from a regulatory deadlock. In June, the trade body EGP-FIPE warned the Senate that the absence of a cohesive national reform framework had left the sector “frozen,” complicating network planning and weakening protective measures aimed at problem gambling.