"IWA 17 is the only worldwide recognized standard focused on lottery and gaming security and integrity"

Do you think that the gaming industry is aware of the importance of standards? Why?

State Lotteries and Gaming Enterprises (SLGE), understanding as such those entities licensed or authorized by States and whose proceeds are dedicated by public decision to good causes and/or the State´s public budget, such as those Members of the World Lottery Association (WLA) and/or Members of the Regional Associations, such as the European State Lotteries and Toto Association (EL), la Corporación Iberoamericana de Loterías y Apuestas del Estado (CIBELAE), North American Association of State and Provincial Lotteries (NASPL), Asia-Pacific Lottery Association (APLA) and the African Lottery Association (ALA), operate in a highly demanding environment.

Due to their very nature of public service, SLGEs strive to operate for the best of society, that involving high of values, including top integrity and participant’s protection. Besides, they operate in highly regulated environments, usually involving product conformance testing. That requires the use of the best available management tools, including the establishment of performance and security aware processes.

Keeping, ensuring and assuring operations running to such demand levels and conformant to local regulations both in terms of financial handling, public protection, integrity and security can be approached under many angles. Certainly many SLGEs are aware of the wide range of standards and benefit from their use. Those cover sectorial agreed voluntary and mandatory standards and guidelines, such for example as Responsible Gaming Standards from WLA, EL and CIBELAE, and such as the WLA-SCS, the Security Control Standard.

Also all the range of Management Standards issued by ISO, such as ISO 9001 for quality management, ISO 27001 for information security management, ISO 3100 for risk management and ISO 22301 for business continuity, ISO 20000 ICT process management, just to name a range of important ones. Note that while SLGEs operate under a coherent perspective they are subject to very different jurisdictional and cultural views, so the use of management standards is wide but there are no product based standards or common procedures established. As such, there are national defined standards and legal compliance procedures, usually tested by state designated assessors, that usually verify conformance of products.

Finally, there are a vast range of Regional Associations standards, guidelines and processes that suit best regional needs, and example of such are those in place by NASPL relating from RFQ management to scratch tickets readers.

Top Executives and staff of SLGEs are very aware of the importance of standards, guidelines and procedures, including the management standards. We can gauge by awareness by some key indicators:

• The existence of a properly set in place certification scheme of the WLA-SCS standard, composed of the standard, the certification guide, independent assessor qualification requirements and acceptance procedures, scheme management and the Security and Risk Management Committee, administering the scheme.
• Around 40% of WLA Members and Associate Members are WLA-SCS certified (currently 66Members), while currently another 15% of Members are in process.
• Submission of WLA-SCS as basis for the ISO International Workshop Agreement, adopted as IWA 17.

SLGEs operations depend critically on public trust, and all elements cementing that trust are indispensable tools to this purpose. Intralot, BMM, GLI, Vermantia, IGT, Melco Crown Entertainment, TCS John Huxley and Novomatic, just to name a few, have applied for International Standards, such as ISO 17025, ISO 27001, ISO 9001, ISO 20000, ISO 27001, ISO 14001.

What are these standards for? And why are they important for companies specialized on gaming?

Note that organizations can apply that standards or can apply to be CERTIFIED as compliant with those standards. While only those companies can answer themselves to each ones reason, overall, organizations apply standards to ensure that their processes stay at the level they design –usually in terms of reaching objectives, performance and controlling cost- while the application for certification involves obtaining external assurance that the processes are established and proper, and goals are met. External assurance is essential for trust based activities, and provides comfort both to internal stakeholders –such as top level management-, staff and external stakeholders – such as regulators and public.

Is the ISO 13810 helpful for hotel and casino resorts? How?

While there are some SLGEs operating casinos probably that is not the most usual product of them. Less hotel and resorts. In any case, ISO standards represent the best consensus agreed ways of approaching matters. That implies that any organization using an ISO developed standard will profit from the combined expertise worldwide available.

As such, ISO 13810:2015, as per ISO site, “establishes general requirements for industrial tourism offered by service providers intending to transmit knowledge of production, scientific and technical activities, both present and past, based on processes, know-how, products or services”. It is to be expected that hotels and casinos will find useful that standard.

In your opinion, does the gambling industry, land-based and online, need a new ISO standard? Why?

IWA 17, Information and operations security and integrity requirements for lottery and gaming organizations, based on WLA-SCS, represents a cornerstone contribution from WLA to the public benefit. It represents the most up to date security practice agreed by consensus, and available to any organization on the lottery and gaming sector – previously WLA-SCS was WLA Members only.

IWA 17 is the only worldwide recognized standard focused on lottery and gaming security and integrity, with a comprehensive and holistic approach, covering strengthened information security management to operations security. SRMC, and WLA, believes it is a good contribution to society, and was happy to share with the world this important intellectual property asset. Now any organization can obtain from ISO that standard.

Talking about iGaming, is there any standard to protect consumer issues?

Digital sales channels and interactive games provide a rich experience to participants. As already said, WLA-SCS covers the security protection side of the consumers, while other WLA and Regional Associations standards cover other sides, such as ensuring and enforcing responsible gaming.

Are you working on new standards right now? What can we expect?

We strive keeping maintained the standards, such that threats and opportunities are always targeted and seized. As most worldwide level standards, a consensus approach is maintained keeping pace with evolutionary path, always with a continual improvement vision. SRMC is now working in enhancing WLA-SCS to take into account the leading edge threats and approaches. Will propose IWA 17 updates in due time, when review cycle timing advices.

Has a private company or state organization involved in gambling activities ever won an ISO Award?

The best place to answer this question is ISO. In any case, SLGEs are highly focused in providing good services and are more centered in cooperation that in competitive elements such as presenting to ISO awards.