Md. Code Regs. 36.10.18.03

Current through Register Vol. 51, No. 24, December 2, 2024

Section 36.10.18.03 - Sports Wagering Platform Requirements

A. All sports wagers shall be initiated, received, and otherwise made within the State unless otherwise licensed by federal law.

B. A sports wagering licensee or applicant shall submit its sports wagering platform and sports wagering equipment to an independent certified testing laboratory prior to their use for sports wagering.

C. Sports wagering platform documentation shall include:

(1) A complete, comprehensive, technically accurate description and explanation of the sports wagering platform;

(2) A detailed operating procedures of the sports wagering platform; and

(3) A description of the risk management framework, including:

(a) User access controls for all sports wagering licensee personnel;

(b) Information regarding segregation of duties;

(c) Information regarding automated risk-management procedures;

(d) Information regarding identifying and reporting fraud and suspicious activity;

(e) Information regarding technical safeguards that protect the sports wagering platform from unauthorized access and loss of data;

(f) Controls to ensure compliance with all statutory and other legal requirements;

(g) A description of AML compliance standards;

(h) A description of all software applications that comprise the sports wagering platform;

(i) A description of wagers available to be offered by the sports wagering platform;

(j) A description of all third-party systems proposed for utilization;

(k) A description of the method proposed by the sports wagering licensee to prevent cheating; and

(l) Any other information imposed by the Commission.

D. Upon request, a sports wagering licensee shall promptly provide the Commission with relevant reports and documentation that shall include, at a minimum:

(1) Complete, comprehensive, technically accurate description and explanation of the sports wagering platform;

(2) The ability to query or sort wagering data; and

(3) The ability to export wagering data.

E. A sports wagering licensee or a supplier providing a licensee's sports wagering platform shall maintain all transactional wagering data for a period of 5 years.

F. The house rules that apply to wagers placed on a sports wagering platform shall be readily available to a bettor.

G. For each wager, a sports wagering platform shall be capable of recording the:

(1) Description and alphanumeric identifier of the sporting event;

(2) Wager selection;

(3) Type of wager;

(4) Amount of wager;

(5) Date and time of the wager;

(6) Unique wager identifiers;

(7) Bettor identification number;

(8) Current wager status;

(9) Relevant location information;

(10) Results of the wager;

(11) Amount won; and

(12) Date and time the winning wager was paid to the bettor.

H. A sports wagering platform that offers wagering shall be capable of:

(1) Accurately and timely updating of odds for wagers;

(2) Notifying a bettor of any change in odds that is not beneficial to the bettor while the wager is selected but before it is placed;

(3) Allowing bettors to confirm the wager after notification of the odds change; and

(4) Freezing or suspending the offering of wagers when necessary.

I. A sports wagering platform shall be capable of:

(1) Creating a wager;

(2) Settling a wager;

(3) Voiding a wager;

(4) Cancelling a wager; and

(5) Preventing the acceptance of a wager on a prohibited sporting event.

J. If a wager is voided or cancelled, a sports wagering platform shall indicate that:

(1) The transaction was voided or cancelled;

(2) The transaction was rendered nonredeemable;

(3) An entry in the system was made indicating the wager was voided or cancelled; and

(4) Subject to COMAR 36.10.13.07, the transaction is clearly noted in a permanent record.

K. Unless approved in advance by the Commission, a sports wagering licensee or an online sports wagering operator may not alter the odds or any other material aspect of the transaction after accepting a wager.

L. A sports wagering platform shall prevent:

(1) The electronic modification of data to facilitate cheating;

(2) The past posting of wagers; and

(3) The voiding and cancellation of wagers after the outcome of an event is known.

M. If a bettor has a pending wager and the bettor subsequently self-excludes:

(1) The wager may settle; and

(2) The funds and account balance shall be returned to the bettor in accordance with the sports wagering licensee's internal control standards.

N. Software Validation.

(1) At least once every 24 hours and on demand, a sports wagering platform shall perform a software validation on all critical control program components contained on the system to ensure that:

(a) There have been no unauthorized modifications; and

(b) The software is authentic.

(2) The software validation process shall employ a hash algorithm which produces a message digest of at least 128 bits and includes all critical control program components which may affect wagering operations, including but not limited to:

(a) Executables;

(b) Libraries;

(c) Wagering or system configurations;

(d) Operating system files;

(e) Components that control required system reporting; and

(f) Database elements that affect system operations.

(3) In the event of a software validation failure, the sports wagering platform shall have the capability to detect if any system component is determined to be invalid.

O. The sports wagering licensee shall notify the Commission within 12 hours of a validation failure.

P. A sports wagering licensee shall:

(1) Record all validation attempts by the sports wagering platform; and

(2) Maintain the recorded attempts for a period of 180 days.

Q. Data Feeds.

(1) A sports wagering platform shall have controls in place to review the accuracy and timeliness of any data feeds used to offer or settle wagers.

(2) If an incident or error occurs that results in a loss of communication with the data feeds used to offer or redeem wagers, the sports wagering licensee shall record the error in a log capturing:

(a) The date and time of the error;

(b) The nature of the error; and

(c) A description of its impact on the system's performance.

(3) The sports wagering licensee shall maintain the information required by §Q(2) for a minimum period of 2 years.

R. A sports wagering licensee that provides a sports wagering platform shall grant the Commission read only access to the platform in the manner required by the Commission.

S. In a format required by the Commission, a sports wagering platform shall provide a process for the Commission to query and export all sports wagering platform data.

T. The Commission may require additional system specifications.

Md. Code Regs. 36.10.18.03

Amended effective 49:1 Md. R.16, eff. 1/13/2022