ICSS receives 240 cases of corruption

The Sport Integrity (SI) Hotline has received more than 240 allegations of corruption in sport, highlighting a significant number of match-fixing, internal corruption, and abuses.Established in 2018, by the International Centre for Sport Security (ICSS), to provide a safe and secure whistleblowing platform dedicated to reporting misconduct in sport, the SI Hotline has released its first summary of reported cases showcasing the scale and scope of integrity violations impacting global sport.The SI Hotline data shows football is the sport most affected by allegations with 87% of the reported cases, while, other sports affected include tennis, handball, and athletics with 23% of cases.The SI hotline operates on a Whistleblower Security (WBS) platform, a third-party specialist ethics, and case management provider. The hotline is further strengthened by CLUE, state-of-the-art intelligence-management technology that supports efficient case resolution.Whistleblowers from every region can submit their cases online or report by phone. The hotline operates over 220+ supported languages with dedicated phone numbers for easy access to the SI Hotline for whistleblowers.ICSS chairman Mohamed bin Hanzab said that once a case is submitted, an integrity expert at the Sport Integrity Unit (SIU) will analyse the alleged information to verify for authenticity. As content verification is the most challenging part of the investigation, the process goes through multiple checks for the authenticity of the report before the SIU determines to involve the relevant authorities and law enforcement agencies; this is done by way of an SIU Integrity Alert.Throughout the reporting and case management process, strict precautions are taken to protect case confidentiality and the anonymity of the whistleblower, he added.The ICSS was established to work towards safeguarding sport and, over the past nine years, has invested heavily in research, resources, and mechanisms to fight corruption in sport, he pointed out.The SI Hotline has demonstrated, in a relatively short period, the requirement for this service has been acknowledged by international policymakers, governments, and sports institutions. The SI Hotline is seen as a vital tool to help protect those who most need it and to encourage people to come forward to preserve the integrity of the sport.The SI Hotline has developed a significant capability that provides the SIU with one of the world’s largest independent, cross-sport anti-corruption intelligence databases. The serious interconnected crime types, identified in sport have paved a way to identify emerging threats and provide early warnings to governments and sports of potential threats to the safety, security, and integrity of the sport. (QNA)