What may certainly be the most talked about online gambling addiction and scandal to ever surface is coming to a resolution now that its perpetrator, Philip Smith of England, has been handed a nine year prison sentence. Having siphoned over £2 million in investment funds from personal clients, Smith used approximately £600,000 of that money to fuel an internet sports betting habit that could very well be the most damaging online gambling addiction to be documented in the United Kingdom.

The sentence was handed down by Judge Peter Larkin, who referred to Smith's crimes as 'dishonesty on a truly breathtaking scale'. Indeed, the scope of both Smith's cons and betting sprees were remarkable. Smith had apparently known some of the people he swindled for nearly twenty years, including one woman in her sixties whom Smith stole £185,000 from. In all, Smith conned a documented fifty-one people - most of which were elderly and/or the helpless.

Smith was able to get away with laundering his clients' funds in addition to encouraging them to share their credit card details with him, which he would later use to open online casino gambling accounts and raise credit limits. At the height of Smith's addiction, he had sixty-seven credit cards on file with a single internet betting site, which included the likes of BetFair, Stanley James, Spread Ex and Blue Square. Most of the wagers Smith was making were sports related, namely on horses and golf.

Obviously, this case has highlighted concerns about problem gambling prevention, and that the fact that a single account holder had registered sixty-seven credit had not raised any red flags should be a major cause for concern as to what actions gaming operators are taking to remain vigilant in underage and problem gambling prevention. The case has certainly given rise to regulation rules soon to be enforced by the unprecedented legislation of the 2005 UK Gambling Act, which will serve in preventing cases like that of Philip Smith to cease from happening in the first place.