Douyin, the Chinese counterpart of TikTok, has announced that it has taken measures against 417,000 accounts linked to gambling in an effort to enhance its crackdown during the World Cup. This initiative was reported by Chinese media outlet CNR, detailing that the accounts were flagged over the last month.
Of this total, Douyin permanently banned 90,000 accounts solely for their involvement in black market football betting activities. Furthermore, the company has provided information about several account holders to law enforcement authorities.
A spokesperson for Douyin indicated that certain criminal groups had employed coded and subtle language to promote illegal third-party gambling applications and websites. Some accounts even utilized embedded QR codes that directed viewers to unauthorized sports betting platforms.
Douyin reiterated that all gambling and associated promotional efforts breach its terms of service. The spokesperson advised users to maintain a rational perspective while following the tournament and cautioned against disseminating any illicit gambling content.
The crackdown on gambling was initially announced by Douyin in April this year, when it revealed the suspension of over 10,000 accounts daily. Many of these used coded phrases and popular euphemisms to dodge the platform's anti-gambling measures.
Douyin also provided an update last month, sharing that its efforts had aided police in apprehending 162 individuals involved in promoting illegal gambling sites and distributing pornography. Additionally, the platform reported the shutdown of around 4,000 livestreams during sessions when gambling-related content was detected.
As part of the broader crackdown on gambling rings, Chinese police, customs officials, and judicial authorities have been active. In Qingdao, Shandong Province, customs officials confiscated 35 silver gambling chips that were allegedly misdeclared as imported collector's coins, according to the Chinese newspaper Dazhong Daily.
While examining an inbound package labeled as "commemorative coins,” customs officers found discrepancies during an X-ray analysis, which led to a manual inspection uncovering the gambling chips mixed among various collector coins, each marked with a face value of 100 US dollars.
Under Chinese law, gambling chips are classified as prohibited items for import and export, deemed harmful to the nation’s politics, economy, culture, and moral standards. Customs officials have stated that they will hold onto the chips pending further investigations.
