Online Gambling is the use of electronic devices to place bets on games of chance or skill. It can be done on websites or by using dedicated apps. It is a rapidly growing sector of the gambling industry, and has been a key contributor to its growth in recent years. In the United States, a number of states have passed laws legalizing online gambling, and federal regulations continue to impact financial transactions. However, the legality of online gambling varies widely across jurisdictions, and differs between types of games.

In general, the literature demonstrates that risk and protective factors relating to online gambling are similar to those that apply to land-based gambling. However, factors acting at the relational level appear to be relatively underexplored. In particular, studies examining the impact of the university context on the likelihood of internet gambling have found that those who gamble at this modality tend to do so in the presence of academic issues within their families (Mihaylova et al., 2013).

Although most people who gamble online do so through desktop or laptop computers, there is a growing market for mobile betting apps. The emergence of these technologies has made it possible to bet from any location, with the exception of some casinos. The most popular way to gamble on a mobile device is through slot machines, which involve spinning three-to-five reels that contain symbols such as cherries and bars. When a winning combination is matched, the player receives a prize.