Many openly change domain names, disregard the law to illegally operate and profit from online gambling.
Recently, there has been much talk about the phenomenon of “king of slippery tricks” on phimmoi.internet. Every time it is shut down, this illegal movie website changes its domain name to continue its activities.
However, it’s not just phimmoi, but disregarding the law and openly “escaping the body” is a common trick of high-tech crime.
From phimmoi to undercover gambling sites like Rikvip.us, Man.membership,..
On August 19, the Investigation Agency of Ho Chi Minh City Police Department announced that it is investigating a case of copyright infringement and related rights according to a decision to prosecute a criminal case related to the website: www.phimmoi.internet.
This website has exploited, copied, used, displayed, and transmitted unauthorized films to the public without the permission of the copyright holder. It also illegally advertised products and services with copyrighted films, making huge profits.
The case is still being investigated to bring to trial, but phimmoi.internet has returned with a new domain name, “iphimmoi.internet.”
This website has the same interface as the old website, along with the name “phimmoi.internet” which has caused many people to exclaim “slippery trick.”
This story is similar to what is happening with the undercover gambling site RikVip.us. While the “boss” of the RikVip network, Phan Sao Nam, was just released from prison before his term expired and is still arranging to pay the consequences according to the court’s ruling, there has been a gambling site named RikVip.us operating for a long time.
This online website copied exactly the methods and tricks of the former RikVip, allowing players to deposit money into the game. Then, RikVip.us allows players to exchange virtual money for phone cards or even cash when they win.
In an interview with a reporter, Lieutenant Colonel, Master Dinh Thanh An (People’s Police Academy) stated that establishing these gaming websites and similar ones to organize players to participate in reward-based card games constitutes the crime of gambling (Article 321 of the Penal Code) and the crime of organizing gambling or gambling dens (Article 322 of the Penal Code).
Lieutenant Colonel An affirms that using real money to buy virtual money to play games and then being able to convert virtual money into real money is considered gambling and organizing gambling.
Meanwhile, according to S., a well-known player in the online gambling world who has retired, this “slippery trick” phenomenon is not rare for undercover gambling sites.
When targeted by authorities and subjected to search and crackdown operations, the individuals behind these websites immediately change domain names to continue their activities.
S listed many similar sites like Man.membership, B29.win… that have used this trick to operate for a long time despite law enforcement efforts.
Why do these “slippery tricks” appear on the internet?
Explaining the appearance of these “slippery tricks” in the field of high-tech crime, especially undercover gambling, Lieutenant Colonel An believes that law enforcement agencies use various measures to block gambling sites.
However, blocking the sites only means blocking the domain names or redirecting to other domain names within Vietnamese territory. Therefore, the offenders can easily change to another domain name and rent servers in foreign countries.
In addition, online gambling crimes can also use other methods and tactics to conceal their identities, such as creating VPNs (virtual private networks) and using browsers with VPN functions to hide their real IP addresses to evade investigation. Offenders can easily erase traces when gambling or organizing gambling activities due to the intangible nature of electronic data.
With these reasons, high-tech crime can bypass law enforcement agencies and continue to target the path of crime due to the huge profits involved.
Strong suppression is necessary
Combating high-tech crime is not easy. However, with the determination of the police force in recent times, many cases have been uncovered, clarified, and brought to trial.
A typical example is the criminal case prosecuted by the Investigation Agency of Ho Chi Minh City Police Department against phimmoi.internet, leading to the arrest of three individuals.
Lieutenant Colonel Dinh Thanh An evaluated: “It can be said that this is the first criminal case in the history of prosecution related to digital content copyright. It is a preventive step against copyright violations and illegal activities related to digital content: online gambling, organizing online gambling; online prostitution, online pimping…”
However, with the complex development of high-tech crime, especially gambling and organizing gambling crimes online, with the increasing trend of various forms of gambling organizations, the number of participants, organizers, and players, it requires more determined involvement from law enforcement agencies.
In addition to phimmoi, other websites such as RikVip.us, Man.membership… also need to be wiped out soon to ensure the severity of the law and bring peace to society.
According to Lieutenant Colonel Dinh Thanh An, participating in online games is purely for entertainment purposes for electronic media, computer networks, and telecommunications networks users.
However, when using real money to register for online games, users need to consider whether their actions violate the law. There are some risks and dangers involved, such as:
Firstly, players can be prosecuted for the offense of “gambling” as stipulated in Article 321 of the 2015 Penal Code (amended and supplemented in 2017). Gambling using the internet, computer networks, telecommunications networks, and electronic means to commit crimes is one of the aggravating circumstances with a prison sentence ranging from 3 to 7 years.
Secondly, gambling enthusiasts often lose to the cunning individuals who entice them. They may win during trial plays but usually lose heavily when playing for real. This is also one of the tricks used to deceive and appropriate players’ assets.
In addition, the mentioned gambling sites and applications also show signs of fraudulently appropriating assets when players want to withdraw money, or when a large number of players participate, the offenders can easily disable the network and escape.