Octo Attack

What is Octo Attack?

Kemorwale said Botswana needed to modernise oversight as the sector developed, including through a central electronic monitoring system and stronger enforcement capability. “Truth be told, this industry is evolving as the sun rises. You snooze, you lose,” Kemorwale said. He added that the Authority still relies on outside specialists for some technical regulatory work because domestic expertise is limited.

Illegal betting remained a central enforcement concern. In December 2025, the Gambling Authority and Financial Intelligence Agency were reported to be investigating eight foreign-based betting websites allegedly using local proxies to operate in Botswana.

Authorities were also reported to be working with communications and financial-sector bodies to restrict access to illegal platforms and disrupt associated payment channels.

What is Octo Attack?

The Interior Ministry insisted that the crackdown on digital illegal gambling would persist as part of a broader strategy to prevent criminal proceeds being fed into the economy via banking and payment infrastructures. 

Türkiye’s Law No. 7258 criminalises the operation of gambling activities without a licence. Offences are often combined with money laundering and fraud charges, amplifying legal consequences for offenders.

This latest operation forms part of an ongoing surge in Türkiye’s efforts to curb illegal betting throughout 2026. 

How to play Octo Attack

“I’ll be very, very open and straightforward about it,” Weizer told analysts on Playtech’s post-Q2 earnings call. “There were certain concerns that because it is an election year, and obviously, gaming is a political issue or there were references by politicians throughout the elections about gambling.

“Given the sensitivity around that, we were kindly asked to collaborate with the government [and] with the prospective customer that we are in discussions with to wait until the elections.”

Despite the delay, Weizer declared: “I will say that the expectations remain the same to enter into an agreement and launch sometime at the beginning of next year.”