Methodology

What we collect

The database starts with public regulatory records. UKGC records are imported directly from UK Gambling Commission datasets. MGA records are synchronized from structured data derived from the official Malta Gaming Authority Licensee Register. Every normalized domain is stored once, while regulator-specific licence records are stored separately and linked back to that domain.

Multi-regulator deduplication

The normalized domain is the unique casino entity. If the same domain appears in UKGC and MGA data, Casino License Check does not create a second casino. It creates another regulatory record with its own regulator, operator, licence number, status and source URL.

Operator entity linking

Regulatory records are linked to normalized operator entities. Regulator-specific identities such as a UKGC account number or MGA upstream operator ID are preserved separately, so a shared visible operator name does not erase source provenance.

Website checks

A scheduled crawler checks small batches of domains throughout the day. It records the raw check observation, stable confirmed status, HTTP code, final URL and final domain, redirect count, response time, HTTPS result, page title, canonical URL and available logo or icon metadata.

Transient-failure confirmation

A timeout, network error or server-side 5xx response does not immediately overwrite a previously confirmed status. Casino License Check records the raw observation and schedules priority rechecks. Three consecutive transient failures are required before a stable status changes to Unreachable or a server-side HTTP error. A successful check resets the failure counter.

First check versus a change

The first website check establishes a baseline. It is not counted as a detected change. Later confirmed changes to website availability or redirect domain are added to the change history with a detection date.

What a status means

Online means the monitored domain returned a successful response. Redirected means it resolved successfully on a different domain. Restricted covers responses such as 403, 429 or 451. Pending recheck means a transient failure has not yet reached the confirmation threshold. Unreachable means repeated checks could not establish a usable response. These are technical observations, not safety ratings.

Open the data quality dashboard to review monitoring coverage, pending rechecks and shared final destinations.