Teenagers can get hooked into gambling and debt through online games found on Facebook, a Tauranga addiction specialist warns.
Salvation Army public health promoter for problem gambling Yvonne McLean said while the trend had not yet emerged in Tauranga, overseas teenagers were increasingly being lured into gambling through the same online games that were popular among Bay youth.
Young teenagers in particular were inundated with invitations to play games and online pokies for points through Facebook. That had become a gateway to gambling real money, leading toward major debt and in some cases fraud convictions for young people, Ms McLean said.
"What has become a huge problem is when debit cards became popular what we saw was an increase in online gaming," she told the Bay of Plenty Times. "They start off on Facebook and are offered all these types of games to play which seem harmless and fun but for those with addictive personalities, they can get addicted from that and start to play for points."
Ms McLean said such sites often had links or levels offering real-money gambling, leading young teens down a dangerous path. "When their credit's up they can buy more for $3 and their debit card's right there."