The National Lottery Administration (MPİ) reported that it blocked 233,000 websites in 2023 and 2024. Of these, 56% originated in the USA, 17% in Armenia, and 6% in the Netherlands.
The MPİ passed on its findings to the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office and the Cybercrime Department for further investigation. Legal actions are underway against 376,000 websites and over 6,700 unique domains.
Şimşek underlined the significant threat of these black-market websites when it comes to the prosperity of the Turkish economy, undermining tax revenues from state-owned enterprises like Milli Piyango (National Lottery) and IDDAA (sports betting).
He emphasised: “We are determined to prevent unregistered economic activities and financial crimes that harm our citizens…