Gesilea Fonseca Teles, superintendent of the National Telecommunications Agency, addressed the current difficulties in her statement before the CPI of Manipulation of Games and Sports Betting.
Brazil.- The superintendent of Supervision of the National Telecommunications Agency (Anatel), Gesilea Fonseca Teles, testified before the Parliamentary Commission of Investigation (CPI) of Manipulation of Games and Sports Betting. In her speech, the official stated that with the current legal framework there are limitations when it comes to blocking all online betting sites that operate outside the law.
"To ensure that the regulatory framework for betting works, it is necessary to remove from the market online betting sites that are outside the norms regulating the activity. Another suitable solution would be to expand Anatel's legal jurisdiction, as a way to increase supervision of the sector," explained Fonseca Teles.
Invited to testify before the commission, the official explained to the senators the role of Anatel in the fight against irregular betting. She highlighted that the entity actively participates in this process by assisting the Ministry of Finance, which is the administrative authority that has the power to indicate which websites should be blocked.
She also emphasized that Anatel cannot decide which website to block nor does it create a list. What the agency does is receive a list from the Ministry of Finance and, from there, communicates with the telecommunications service providers that provide mobile or fixed internet access.
"We communicate the decision taken by the Ministry of Finance that these telecommunications operators block specific websites previously listed by the ministry. It is very important to understand the role of Anatel. Anatel does not conduct an investigation, does not investigate which website is legal or illegal, it simply has the authority to inform Internet access providers to block the websites previously listed," she clarified.
She also highlighted the agility in communication between Anatel and the Ministry of Finance. "The communication between Anatel and the Ministry of Finance is quick. As soon as we receive the list, we immediately start the communication, transmitting the information to all providers," she explained.
The official also told the senators that accessing the Internet through a virtual private network (VPN) still poses a challenge at the time of supervision. "When a user uses a virtual private network, there is an encrypted connection between a user and the server. When this type of connection occurs, the user disappears from where they are physically located and is considered to be located where the VPN is. So, if the user wants to evade a blocking order here in Brazil, they can connect to a VPN abroad and, for all intents and purposes, this user is abroad. Thus, they can avoid this location and escape the blockages," detailed the official about the difficulties involved in the blocking process.
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Therefore, Fonseca Teles acknowledged that the VPN "is really a technological challenge" and represents "a convenience that users can use to try to circumvent the system." "Anatel would have to intensify tools, would need to have more budget and would have to have more people dedicated to eventually try to implement a better search, a solution for this type of VPN. The problem that arises is not even the technical difficulty of doing it. The question that arises is that Anatel's jurisdiction is not within the Internet, and this is what limits all our action when it comes to betting," she detailed.
