The Norwegian Gambling Authority (NGA) has ruled Norsk Tipping’s recent lottery draw error as one that “broke the law” and violated the nation’s Gambling Act.
Additionally, the regulator confirmed it will evaluate the implementation of the operator’s largest lottery games, in a significant decision from the authority.
On 27 June, around 47,000 Norsk Tipping customers were incorrectly notified that they had won large jackpots due to a technical failure in the coding that converts euro cents in Norwegian kroner, with 30,000 players receiving a text or push notification regarding the wrong prize.
Norsk Tipping, the monopoly operator in Norway, confirmed at the time that no incorrect winnings were paid out, however, the now former CEO, Tonje Sagstuen, resigned from her post three days later as a result of the major error.
The NGA has subsequently outlined the reasons why it deemed the technical error to be a breach of section eight of the country’s Gambling Act.
As a consequence, Norway’s regulator has reminded operators of the Act’s guidance, which states those providing games of chance must do so in a “fair manner that is capable of winning the public’s trust”.
Anya Therese Markhus, senior adviser at the NGA, explained that Norsk Tipping failed to adhere to the terms of the Act.
She remarked: “Norsk Tipping has violated the Gambling Act. People should be able to trust their games.
“The fact that several thousand players receive a notice of excessive winnings is clearly harmful to trust.”
The NGA said it had been contacted by players seeking more information about their rights with regard to the issue, as well as complaints, but has told people to reach out to Norsk Tipping on the matter.
The regulator also confirmed its intention to oversee an evaluation of Lotto, Eurojackpot and Vikinglotto, three of Norsk Tipping’s most prominent products, following a 12-month period that has included several other high-profile errors in addition to this latest one.
In 2024, a player was mistakenly paid NOK25m (£1.8m) from the casino title KongKasino, and in the same year, iPhone and/or iPad users were unable to log out of any Norsk Tipping games for a four-month period, a problem that went undetected until flagged by a customer.
Multiple drawing errors in both the Eurojackpot and Lotto’s Super Draw were also discovered, that directly led to players in some cooperatives, cooperative banks and gambling clubs boasting a greater chance of winning over the course of a number years, leading to at least one wrong winner in every draw.
Markhus made the regulator’s stance clear: “Several serious errors have been uncovered in the past year. Norsk Tipping has too poor control over its games.
“These cases show a fundamental problem in Norsk Tipping’s systems and controls. These are serious errors, and in addition, there are several examples of Norsk Tipping not having discovered them before the consequences were major.”
Markhus did not disclose how long the inspection of Norsk Tipping’s largest lottery games would take.
The operator’s acting CEO, Vegar Strand, conceded that the NGA’s stance does not come as a surprise, and that Norsk Tipping shared the viewpoint that the latest error was indeed “very serious”.
He added: “We have initiated thorough reviews with external expertise of the error situations we have had.
“It is not unexpected that the Norwegian Lottery Authority wants to conduct its own inspection of our lottery games, which they have notified us of today.
“We look forward to receiving this inspection and see it as an important step in restoring trust in the company.”
The post Norsk Tipping “broke the law” with lottery draw error, rules Norwegian regulator first appeared on EGR Intel.
Monopoly operator continues to come under scrutiny for coding blunder that incorrectly notified 47,000 players they had won large jackpots
The post Norsk Tipping “broke the law” with lottery draw error, rules Norwegian regulator first appeared on EGR Intel.