Kyrgyzstan’s Financial Supervision Agency has emphasised that strict control of the internet could be coming in response to the surge of illegal online gambling operators in the country.
Speaking on Birinchi Radio, Kairayt Mamatov, Chair of the Financial Supervision Agency, warned that the government must implement filters targeting online casinos, pornographic websites and online games like Roblox.
He said: “We need to allocate funds and bring all internet traffic under total control. I believe filters are necessary. People are losing money, cars, and houses. Despite the bans, they keep gambling on foreign platforms. Some use VPNs; others find other ways to circumvent the restrictions.”
Mamatov pointed to restrictions in place in nations like China, where he noted that internet traffic is monitored and banned applications don’t work.
Kyrgyz citizens are prohibited from accessing the country’s licensed sector, which is solely allowed to target foreign nationals.
However, the agency said that one illegal platform attracts more than 40,000 active users each month, and gaming accounts are funded using bank cards from international payment systems.
Mamatov further clarified that any changes to internet access would not impact social networks, messengers and news sources, or control personal correspondence, according to 24.kg.
Kyrgyzstan’s government blocked TikTok in 2024, citing concerns that the social media platform was not complying with laws related to harming children’s health. But critics at the time argued that the move was part of a wider deterioration of freedom of speech in the country.
Mamatov said: “People might start to get upset again, as they did with TikTok. But we spend two to three hours a day on social media. We need to think about the safety of our children, too.”
Beyond changes to internet access, lawmakers in Kyrgyzstan are also considering legislation to prohibit gambling through binary options and increase punishments for intermediaries, such as payment providers, that facilitate participation in such activity.
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