Brazil blocks 13,241 illegal betting sites as spam from clandestine operators intensifies

Brazil’s betting ban, in force since Tuesday (25/9), has triggered a parallel push by illegal operators: the Ministry of Finance says it has asked for the blocking of 13,241 unlawful sites, while reports from users and support groups point to heavier spam and social-media pressure from offshore platforms. For PSPs and payment teams in high-risk verticals, the point is simple: restrictions do not end demand; they change where traffic and customer acquisition attempts show up.

1. The Ministry of Finance said that, out of 188 authorized sites available until Monday (5/10), only one was still online, and it had already requested the blocking of the rest. At the same time, the government said it has asked for the blocking of 13,241 illegal sites since the restriction took effect.
2. According to psychologist Rafael Ávila, founder of the Associação de Proteção e Apoio ao Jogador and a consultant to the Ministry of Health on policies for this audience, some patients relapsed in the two weeks before the report, mostly on Chinese platforms specializing in slot machines. He said the movement started before the official ban date, driven in part by the growing public debate around the issue.
3. Ávila said illegal platforms started sending mass spam once the ban took effect, with promotion in messaging-app groups and social networks “hour by hour,” including promises of easy profits, large bonuses, and money just for signing up. In practice, this is the acquisition channel when regulated doors start closing: if one path is blocked, operators open ten more in chat groups.
4. Gabriel Pedroso, a 32-year-old graphic designer who has previously had gambling problems, said the harassment increased after the ban and that betting ads now appear across his social feeds. Eduardo Sousa, 21, described a case in an addiction support group where a user promoted an illegal platform as “bugged” to make wins easier; the post was removed and the user was banned from the group.
5. The tech company Besafe has developed an app that blocks access to betting sites, both Brazilian and foreign. The app recorded 840 new users per day last week, up 68% from a previous average of 500 registrations per day.

The detail that matters for high-risk operators is not just the ban itself, but the enforcement pattern around it: site blocking, message-app spam, and migration to offshore or clandestine platforms. That is the part PSPs, acquirers, and compliance teams tend to feel first.