The Chinese State Council Information Office is engaged in a massive attack against websites that violate cultural rules, including more than one hundred online casino sites. At least half of the operators is facing a prison sentence of at least 5 years.

Wang Chen, minister of the Information Bureau said the nationwide crackdown on illegal online gambling sites is done to protect the population against Internet crime including viruses, identity theft and money laundering. The minister also said that the increased crackdown will improve the cultural environment of the Internet in China. The online freedom in China is pretty much absent, several groups that advocate for Internet freedom call the restrictions on the internet the “Great Firewall of China.” Although casino gambling is allowed in the Chinese enclave of Macau, the government discourages internet casinos gambling by banning many websites, with high penalties if the prohibition is violated.

Since November 2010 the Chinese government has closed more than 60,000 websites and removed 350 million photos. 785 million websites were examined to determine which sites contain illegal content. The authorities also investigated 13,000 illegal advertisements, 800 illegal audiovisual websites and over 150 online casino gambling sites. Many of the sites under investigation have a location in China and specialize in sports betting. Some sites offer casino gambling software with slot machines, card games and other games popular in the region.