Every so often we get requests for reviewing websites and platforms that are so obviously bogus that it boggles the mind why users even considered it as a viable platform in the first place. Such is the case with Ukzonebet.
Ukzonebet is unregistered
Despite obviously targeting the South African market, Ukzonebet is unregistered in South Africa. Checks for the company on the Companies and Intellectual Property Commission database returned no results.
All variations including Ukzonebet, UK Zone Bet and UK Zone, etc., returned zero results. A similar search for formally applied or registered Trademarks in South Africa, with any and all variations of Ukzonebet returned zero results.
False claims and unregistered financial products and betting
Ukzonebet claims that through their “daily forecast of UK49’S, Goslotto (sic), Mega Million, SA Lotto, Nla (sic), PowerBall, Soccer and many more”, users would get “100% winning numbers” on these games.
This claim is egregiously false. Lotteries do not work this way. No person or entity could ever make such bold claims, not least guarantee you “100% winning numbers”.
The only way they could do that is if they have the lottery results beforehand as it relates to the aforementioned lotteries. Or if they are engaged in match-fixing as it relates to soccer. Both of which are illegal and punishable offences.
Despite punting itself as a supposed lottery and sports prediction platform, Ukzonebet is also peddling unlicensed and unregulated financial products.
Ukzonebet is, as you already guessed, not registered with South Africa’s Financial Sector Conduct Authority as an Authorised Financial Service Provider.
But despite this, Ukzonebet is touting what it calls the Zone Coin, a supposed crypto coin, which Ukzonebet claims is equivalent to R100.
Through an intricate ploy of prompts, testimonials and projected value tables, Ukzonebet attempts to lure potential investors, writing “EARN UPTO R10,500 NOW!! CASHOUT TO YOUR BANK ACCOUNT IMMEDIATELY”.
This, together with other claims of 1-year investments with ludicrous returns, and a so-called 24-hour investment, are nothing more than outright scams deserving of jail time.
Ukzonebet also offers an unregulated betting on its website, through something called ZONE BET. Betting and gambling at large, are a regulated activity in South Africa, requiring registration and ongoing compliance with the gambling board, and general laws and compliance requirements South Africa.
One such requirement is providing information to the public of the appropriate bookmaker license number and your gambling board of registration, as well as the adherence to the ethos of National Responsible Gambling Programme.
Ukzonebet is naturally not registered with any provincial gambling board, has no bookmaker license number and accordingly does not adhere to the National Responsible Gambling Programme.
Ukzonebets’s website lacks credibility
Ukzone’s website is an unadulterated HTML mess, whose design is indicative of low-trust and self-designed HTML websites found in the late 1990s.
The website also prominently displays a fake visitor counter entitled “Online Now”, whose figures move between 95000 – 13500 visitors, with every refresh.
Website audience measuring platform, Similarweb shows that the website had only 542 visits in August 2024, and had equally low numbers in July 2024 (852) and peaked at 6300 visits in June 2024.
Fake records of supposed winners are also littered throughout the Ukzonebet website, with the names of the supposed winners all appearing to be fake.
While South African names differ given the country’s many ethnic groups, they do, however, tend to have quite a distinct character. Allowing one to discern the difference between names and surnames.
However, many of the supposed winners on the Ukzonebet website, have first names that also double as surnames, such as “Siyabonga Banele”, “Lethabo Blessing”, etc.
Examples of attempts of social proofing on the Ukzonebet website are a dime a dozen, and include countless fake testimonials and text such as “Like: 892k | 355k COMMENTS”, appearing out of nowhere, where no such functionality to either like or comment exists on the website.
Other examples include meaningless text such as “this website is officially Approved and it is also certified by SSL certification, this means all your Activities on this website is 100% Guaranteed and safe (sic).”
Where this official approval comes from is unclear. Additionally, having a website with an SSL connection somehow meaning authenticity, is a stretch that only a swindling outfit would make to an unaware public.
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