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Complaints about offshore betting ads more than doubled year-on-year, according to the advertising regulator’s latest report.
Offshore betting was the top violator of regulations on ads in India over the past year, accounting for almost half of cases.
The Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) identified offshore betting as the top violator in its 2024–25 Annual Complaints Report.
The ASCI investigated 9,599 complaints and reviewed 7,199 advertisements over the year. It required modifications in 98% of the ads reviewed.
Offshore betting made up 43% of the ads needing changes, nearly double second-placed realty at 24.9%. Personal care (5.7%), healthcare (5.2%) and food and beverage (4.7%) completed the top five.
In the report, the ASCI said complaints about betting more than doubled compared to last year. This increase followed the launch of a special monitoring unit with three online gaming federations in January 2025.
ASCI flagged all betting ads for violating Chapter 3 of its Code, which prohibits illegal product promotions like gambling.
ASCI reported that over 3,000 offshore betting ads appeared during the year. Of these, 318 came from social media influencers. Influencer violations accounted for 14% of total ads processed.
India’s special monitoring unit aids compliance
The ASCI credited its special monitoring unit for improving ad surveillance in its latest report. It launched the unit with the Federation of Indian Fantasy Sports, All India Gaming Federation and E-Gaming Federation.
“The special monitoring unit identified many illegal betting platforms being promoted through disguised ads on community and fan pages, including brand tickers and influencer bios,” ASCI said.
“318 influencers were identified, promoting offshore gambling ads on social media. Many community pages also showcased individuals claiming exaggerated gains from placing minimal bets, with embedded links to the betting platforms, often generating high viewer engagement.
“Additionally, several digital posts impersonating actors, news anchors and other well-known personalities, showcasing how they profited from these platforms, were flagged for urgent attention to government regulators.”
More India consumers making betting ad complaints
The ASCI said it identified 89% of processed ads through its own monitoring.
It received the remaining 11% as complaints from the public. The public flagged 659 ads for review – an 83.5% rise from the previous year.
Digital platforms continued to lead complaints, making up 94.4% of all ads processed.
Meta accounted for 79% of those complaints, followed by other websites at 12%.
The ASCI said it actively tracked social media tags to catch consumer-flagged violations.
Manisha Kapoor, ASCI’s chief executive, said: “This year has been one of meaningful collaborations, as we expanded our efforts to address critical areas like offshore betting/gambling and real estate violations, which are high-impact violations. These initiatives reflect a renewed commitment by ASCI to keep the advertising landscape accountable and responsible.”
Earlier this year, a report on the Indian gambling market found that illegal operators are “thriving” and sites belonging to just four platforms received 1.6 billion visits in three months. The Gambling and Betting Market in India report, published by policy think-tank Digital India Foundation, recommended stricter regulation on illegal sites in India.
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