It is confirmed that 11 people including poker site owners have been charged with gambling-related crimes. The charges may include "Conspiracy to Violate Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act," "Violation of Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act" "Operation of Illegal Gambling Business", "Conspiracy to Commit Bank Fraud and Wire Fraud" and "Money Laundering Conspiracy". If convicted, some defendants could face up to 20 years in prison and a fine of $250,000.

This is the largest action against online gambling since last July when Bet on Sports and other companies were pled guilty for illegal online gaming and related activities.

The first message reading from these poker sites now is "This domain name has been seized by the FBI pursuant to an Arrest Warrant in Rem obtained by the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York and issued by the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York." Others may be related to penalties of violation of the Acts, laws, and regulations.

This news apparently gives you a sign that it is illegal to gamble real money on the internet although "You can go to Vegas. You can go to Atlantic City. You can go to a racetrack. You can go to those places and gamble legally. But don't do it online. It's against the law," says Leslie Bryant, head of our Cyber Crime Fraud unit at FBI Headquarters.