Chile’s telecoms regulator has instructed six internet service providers to block 37 additional domains, subdomains and mirror sites connected to online betting and gambling platforms under a court-backed DNS-blocking process.
The Subsecretaría de Telecomunicaciones (Subtel) said on 21 September that it had notified Entel, Movistar, Claro, GTD, WOM and VTR of the new list. The operators have 48 hours from notification to implement the blocks through their DNS systems.
The list was submitted to Subtel and validated by the Superintendencia de Casinos de Juego (SCJ), Chile’s casino and gaming regulator.
Subtel said the measure was issued in “strict compliance” with rulings by the Supreme Court and the Santiago Court of Appeals. The ISPs must submit evidence directly to the Santiago Court of Appeals showing that the blocks have been implemented. They must also provide Subtel with the exact date and time of execution.
According to the regulator, the court identified DNS blocking of individually specified domains as an appropriate approach because it is targeted and carries a comparatively lower risk of inadvertently restricting access to lawful online services.
Subtel said it would continue the procedure as further domains, subdomains and mirror sites are identified, provided they are specific, verifiable and validated in advance by the SCJ. It added that the process includes mechanisms to correct blocks where lawful services are affected unintentionally.
The Chilean Association of Online Betting Platforms (aPAL), an industry association representing online betting operators active in Chile, challenged the latest instruction. It said some of the domains included in the measure were not covered by the judicial decisions forming the basis of the blocking process.
The latest action follows an earlier Subtel instruction this month requiring the same ISPs to block 42 URLs associated with online betting and gambling platforms.