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Currently, individuals wishing to gamble via the Internet can choose from several types of payment options other than credit cards. These include:

VISA and MasterCard debit cards (also called check cards): These cards, which carry the logo of one of the two largest credit card associations, are tied directly to the cardholder’s bank account. Funds for all transactions are deducted directly from the cardholder’s bank account, but cardholders can make credit card-type transactions that do not require a personal identification number. A personal identification number is not required to use this card on line, for example, since the transactions are processed through the VISA and MasterCard systems. Check card gaming transactions carry the same gaming merchant code as credit card transactions and thus can also be blocked.

Private-label debit cards: These cards are similar to the check cards described above but are issued by private companies rather than credit card associations. On-line payment providers (also known as payment aggregators): These companies send and receive funds electronically for such uses as on-line auctions and purchases.

Wire transfers: Some gaming Web sites promote this method of payment, which allows Internet gaming customers to wire money directly from a bank account to a gaming Web site. In some instances, bank wire information is posted on individual gaming sites, and gaming operators frequently use wire transfers to pay customers.

“E-cash” or digital cash: This method of payment is a digital representation of real money that can be placed on a computer hard drive, smart card, other devices with memory, (including cellular phones and other electronic communication devices), or in an on-line repository. Consumers purchase e-cash from an authorized provider. These funds can then be transferred among vendors and individuals using compatible electronic systems, in some cases without resorting to banks or other financial intermediaries. When customers spend the e-cash, it is credited to the retailer’s e-cash account and later transferred to the retailer’s regular bank account.

Internet gambling sites also offer money orders; traveler’s checks; bank drafts; cashier’s, certified, and personal checks; and a number of other electronic banking systems or processors as payment options.