Data reveals increased gambling addiction in Japan

Shibuya Crossing in Tokyo, Japan

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Data revealed in a report by the Society Concerned about Gambling Addiction (SCGA), a Japanese gambling addiction support body, shows that the number of consultation requests the association has received has increased 11 times over the past five years. The association also revealed that of its consultations from January to November 2024, 91 had a family member gambling at online casinos, compared to just eight in 2019.

An SCGA official commented, “When gambling addiction progresses, it becomes difficult to control one’s behavior,” referring to a story the association shared about a woman in her 60s who had been extorted of JPY 10 million by her son, who was subsequently arrested for robbery resulting in injury. The son was looking to fund his gambling addiction. 

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Additionally, SCGA surveyed 681 members, with 30% saying family members with a gambling addiction had committed crimes, including theft, embezzlement, or through online part-time jobs known as yami baito to fund gambling addictions. 

Noriko Tanaka, Head of the SCGA, said, “I feel a sense of crisis over the current situation in which many people are addicted to gambling and commit crimes.”