Disruptions to the EPIS system open the gate to illegal market
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8 Aug 2025 •
Reading time: 3 minutes For the past two days, the EPIS system, the cornerstone of Belgium’s responsible gaming policy, has been experiencing a partial failure. As a result, players are being blocked from entering legal casinos, while illegal platforms are taking advantage of this loophole.
For the past 48 hours, the EPIS (Excluded Persons Information System) has been experiencing malfunctions in Belgium. This database, managed by the Gaming Commission, allows casinos to verify the identity of players in order to deny access to those on the exclusion list.
During this time, registrations don’t get validated and new players can’t register. Frustrated players are turning to illegal sites.
A breakdown with direct consequences for players
Normally, EPIS runs in the background and verification takes a few seconds. But for the past two days, the service has been unstable: legal casinos cannot confirm players’ status. Without confirmation from the EPIS system, casinos are forced to deny access to customers, even if they are not excluded.
This situation creates a worrying paradox:
- Authorised players find themselves unfairly excluded.
- Illegal sites, which do not carry out any checks, become the immediate alternative.
An increased risk of migration to the black market
Gambling regulation experts have long warned of the danger of blocking official systems. A few months ago, the Cruks system, equivalent to the EPIS list in the Netherlands, malfunctioned and blocked players’ access to legal casinos. This led to numerous complaints from players.
The main problem in this type of situation is that when a player cannot access a legal site, they often turn to unlicensed platforms, often hosted abroad, where there are no protections in place.
This temporary migration to the black market exposes players to several problems, including financial losses without legal recourse and an increased risk of addiction.
Technical problem?
For the moment, the Gaming Commission has not publicly disclosed the exact cause of the failure. However, professionals in the sector point to a lack of a technical contingency plan to maintain minimal control in the event of an incident.
This outage not only shuts down a technical tool, it also undermines the credibility of the regulated sector. Casinos and licensed operators invest heavily to comply with legal obligations, but without EPIS, their mission to protect players is compromised.
In the short term, this creates frustration. In the long term, it risks eroding public confidence in legal and responsible gaming.
What is the EPIS system?
Set up to protect vulnerable players, EPIS centralises all gambling bans, whether voluntary (self-exclusion) or imposed by the authorities.
Each time a player logs on to an approved site or enters a physical casino, their identity is instantly verified. If their name appears in the database, access is denied. This system is therefore a crucial tool for preventing gambling addiction and reducing financial and social risks.