South Korea has officially blocked access to prediction market platform Polymarket after the Korea Communications Standards Commission ruled that the operator’s services fall...
On August 24, 2026, the Cyber Investigation Unit of the Ulsan Metropolitan Police Agency revealed that it had arrested members of an illegal gambling network that ran operations worth $43 million through fake YouTube livestreams.
According to the police, 12 individuals were arrested and referred for prosecution, while Interpol Red Notices were issued for 5 additional members who managed to flee South Korea, including the foreign leader who escaped to Thailand. The suspects are accused of operating illegal sports betting, casino, and slot games between 2022 and 2025 and embezzling around $2.1 million.
A police source has shared:
“We plan to arrest suspects who fled overseas, including to Thailand, through international cooperation. We will expand the investigation to include operating organizations and distributors supplying gambling sites to adult PC cafes and others.”
Authorities believe that the criminals conducted YouTube streams to falsely show how players were winning large payouts to lure viewers into their illegal platforms. The investigation found that custom-built traffic manipulation programs were used to promote the online gambling platforms, while specialized teams worked to artificially inflate view counts to make the websites look like they have strong traffic.
The police first launched the enforcement action in March 2025, with the full investigation taking around 18 months; however, the 5 remaining criminals who have fled from South Korea are still being pursued by both South Korean and foreign authorities.
