An online lottery is simply a form of gambling which involves the random drawing of specific numbers for an award to the winner. Online lotteries are available in just about every state through the jackpot lottery delivery service and state-licensed platforms. Some online lotteries involve multi-state draws, with corresponding prizes for millions of dollars in prizes. The names of the lotteries may be familiar to those who have been playing them for years: Powerball, Lotto, and Lottee. However, online lotteries differ from their real world versions in many ways, and may not be worth playing.
Unlike regular lotteries, online lottery tickets can be purchased for any time of day or night, anywhere. Although many states prohibit lottery players from playing their states’ lotteries at work or on school properties (such as schools and day care centers), online lottery sites do allow players to play right from their living rooms. While winning bids for these lotto games are usually more generous than they are for the actual jackpot prizes on real state lotteries, the large sums of money involved can still be intimidating to some. For this reason, many states have enacted laws that require people playing online lotto games to provide identification before the winning number is randomly drawn.
Illinois has some of the most restrictive laws regarding online lottery tickets sales. Unlike other states, lottery promoters in Illinois are restricted from selling tickets to individuals in Illinois without first obtaining a written application and approval from the Illinois State Board of Administration. This means that if you want to buy tickets for any Illinois lottery, you must apply for the necessary licenses first. Although the law on online lotteries is more restrictive, there is no guarantee that it will prevent you from legally buying your Illinois lottery tickets from fraudulent sources online.