The landscape of online betting and gaming has faced increasing threats from fraud in recent years. With advancements in AI technology in 2022 and 2023, fraudsters have gained unprecedented tools to exploit vulnerabilities, leading to significant challenges for iGaming operators. Reports indicate that from 2022 to 2024, the online gaming sector experienced an alarming 64% year-over-year increase in fraud, with bonus abuse emerging as a prominent issue. Fraudsters have increasingly employed AI, automation, and synthetic identities to take advantage of promotional offers.
In response to these evolving threats, EveryMatrix launched Bonus Guardian in late 2025, designed specifically to combat AI-driven fraud. "Bonus Guardian was developed in response to a clear industry challenge," stated Tetiana Dychenko, chief technical officer of casino at EveryMatrix.
Dychenko emphasized that traditional methods, such as manual reviews and rigid rule-based systems, are no longer sufficient against the sophisticated tactics of organized fraud groups. As these groups began using AI and automation to exploit promotions, EveryMatrix identified the need for a targeted solution focused on bonus abuse rather than generic fraud detection.
Bonus Guardian utilizes advanced AI technology to analyze a multitude of signals, including gameplay behavior, deposit patterns, wagering progression, and bonus redemption. The development of the platform involved collaboration among AI specialists, product teams, fraud experts, CRM professionals, and casino specialists, ensuring that the tool addresses the complexities of modern fraud alongside the necessities of effective promotional campaigns.
The platform is structured to assist operators throughout the entire promotional lifecycle. It aids operators in crafting promotions that attract genuine players while minimizing potential for abuse. Once a promotion launches, Bonus Guardian continuously monitors player behavior during registration, deposits, gameplay, and withdrawals. Rather than relying solely on static rules, it generates a behavioral profile for each player, detecting patterns indicative of non-genuine activity or coordinated abuse.
When suspicious behaviors are flagged, operators receive both a risk assessment and insights into the contributory factors. Operators can decide on actions including monitoring player activities, restricting eligibility for promotions, implementing additional wagering requirements, or delaying withdrawals for further investigation.
Dychenko highlighted that the power of Bonus Guardian lies in its behavioral intelligence. "The platform simultaneously analyzes hundreds of signals, including previous gameplay, deposits, and session activities, and it identifies interconnections between multiple accounts that would be nearly impossible to detect manually."
As operators face the dual challenges of enhanced KYC protocols and maintaining enticing promotions for players, EveryMatrix has created a solution that safeguards the experience of genuine customers. Dychenko explains that while fraudsters employ increasingly sophisticated methods to circumvent standard verification processes, genuine player behaviors are harder to disguise. This allows Bonus Guardian to effectively differentiate between authentic customer engagement and organized bonus abuse.
"One of the platform’s strengths is that it enables proportionate responses rather than binary decisions," Dychenko noted. Operators can adjust their responses according to their business objectives and appetite for risk, which helps protect promotional funds and reduces inconvenience for legitimate players. This balance is crucial for maintaining a positive customer experience while preventing fraud.
Accessible through EveryMatrix’s EngageSuite Bonuses for casino and sports, Bonus Guardian integrates seamlessly into the promotion framework, allowing marketing and risk management teams to cooperate in designing promotions with a focus on associated fraud risks. This collaboration ensures that bonuses are appealing yet robust against abuse.
"Bonus Guardian aligns marketing and risk functions towards a shared goal: maximizing promotional ROI," Dychenko stated. As marketing teams create compelling campaigns for player acquisition and retention, risk teams gain insights into behaviors that can help pinpoint vulnerabilities before the threats escalate. Promotions that encourage sustained engagement, such as tournaments and loyalty programs, tend to attract legitimate players more than bonus abusers seeking quick returns, ultimately leading to improved campaign performance with reduced promotional leakage.
Protecting bonus investments has become increasingly essential, particularly considering that promotional leakage could account for 10%-15% of bonus expenses amid rising regulatory pressures and taxation. By ensuring that promotional efforts target genuine users instead of fraudsters, operators utilizing Bonus Guardian can enhance their ROI and overall marketing efficiency. Furthermore, with a reduction in the workload of manual reviews, fraud teams can focus on more significant investigations while marketing teams gain assurance that their campaigns reflect true customer engagement.
Unlike outdated systems that depend primarily on isolated IP checks or device matches, Bonus Guardian addresses an extensive range of gambling fraud techniques, including multi-account operations and synthetic identities. This flexibility allows operators to customize risk thresholds, workflows, and promotional rules, adapting to the unique identities of their brands and player segments, in addition to meeting regulatory demands.
Dychenko articulated the goal of an intelligent system capable of continuous learning from operator feedback and behavioral trends to keep up with evolving fraud techniques. "Continuous learning is fundamental to the platform. Every confirmed fraud case, operator review, and behavioral outcome helps refine the underlying models. As new abuse patterns emerge, Bonus Guardian adjusts itself without requiring operators to constantly develop new rules," she said.
Success, according to Dychenko, is not easily defined by a single measure but is viewed through a lens of improved accuracy in detection, lower rates of false positives, the swiftness of investigations, and the platform's capability to anticipate emerging abuse patterns before they become widespread.
Reflecting on the future, she warned that income from bonus abuse would likely persist, becoming more automated and challenging to separate from legitimate activities. Fraudsters increasingly leverage AI tools to analyze promotions and produce synthetic identities, requiring operators to adopt equally adaptable technologies.
Recent reports highlight the pressing nature of the issue; nearly two-thirds of fraud in the sector is attributed to bonus abuse. Between the first quarters of 2025 and 2026, suspicious transactions surged by 350%, with the average value climbing to over €6,000. Furthermore, a survey by LexisNexis in March 2026 revealed that 78% of operators consider bonus abuse the most significant fraud threat.
Dychenko concluded, "The future lies in behavioral AI that continuously learns from millions of player interactions, identifying emerging abuse patterns before they become widespread. EveryMatrix views Bonus Guardian as an evolving platform that merges machine learning with human expertise, equipping operators to tackle current fraud challenges while anticipating future threats. "
