Pulsz

Is Pulsz safe?

Pulsz is a full online casino in practice: more than 2,000 slots, live dealer tables and jackpot races, with Sweeps Coins that can be cashed out. It runs under sweepstakes rules instead of a state licence, so none of the audits, complaint channels or harm rules of a licensed casino apply. Four state regulators have told it to stop, a 2022 flaw exposed players' ID numbers, and every protection against overspending has to be requested by email. We score Pulsz 38/100, below Chumba Casino at 40.

The App Store text calls Pulsz "an all in one fun social casino experience" and says "there is no real money gaming offered in this app". Users "must be 21 or over", the listing adds, although Apple rates the app 18+. The operator, Yellow Social Interactive Limited, is a Gibraltar company with a US payments line.

Which states have acted against Pulsz?

Maryland's Lottery and Gaming Control Agency wrote to the operator on 3 June 2025 that online casino gaming is not permitted in the state and asked it to stop within 10 days. Louisiana's Gaming Control Board lists Yellow Social Interactive among operators sent cease-and-desist letters. On 15 August 2025 the Arizona Department of Gaming ordered Pulsz and three others to stop serving Arizona, and Pulsz closed Arizona accounts by 19 September, according to Deadspin.

On 4 February 2026 the Illinois Gaming Board told Pulsz that its games, observed on 9 January, let Illinois users "win cash, gift cards, and other prizes in violation of Illinois law", and demanded that it block residents or stop prizes. In October 2026 the App Store listing still names Illinois among states where the app is available. The City of Baltimore sued Pulsz and five other operators in March 2026, alleging illegal gambling and weak age checks; that case is pending.

Players have also sued. An estimated $14 million class settlement covering six states won preliminary approval on 31 August 2026; it settles the claims without a court ruling on them. Under our rules, lawsuits are context, while four state orders without a fine put the regulatory record at 40.

The 2022 data breach

In April 2022 a person describing himself as a bug bounty hunter told the operator he had found an API vulnerability that gave him access to a database. According to the notice filed with California's Attorney General, the data included names, driver's licence numbers and states, and in some cases passport numbers. The company says it fixed the flaw, the man destroyed the data, and it found no misuse. Law enforcement was not told. Affected Californians were offered a year of Kroll credit monitoring.

This matters because sweepstakes casinos collect ID documents from anyone who wants a prize. Pulsz still runs no public bug bounty that we could find, and we found no option for two-step log-in.

What data does Pulsz collect?

Apple's label is short: identifiers are used to track you, and contact details, identifiers and usage data are linked to you. Google Play adds approximate location, shared with analytics firms. Neither shows what the terms allow: age and identity checks and "credit background checks", carried out by third parties. We could not read the privacy policy itself, which sits behind a bot check, so this score rests on the store labels, the terms and the breach notice.

Tools against gambling harm

Pulsz's player safety policy treats the risk as "computer game behavior disorder" and points players to gaming-addiction resources rather than gambling helplines. Every tool works through support. You email or chat to set a daily purchase limit, which can be loosened again after 24 hours. Breaks of 7, 14 or 30 days lock the account until they end. Self-exclusion lasts at least 6 months and, unlike Chumba's, covers every brand the operator runs. Reopening takes another 7 days and a conversation. Compare this with Fliff, whose limits also need an email but cannot be lifted early.

Who should be careful

1. Anyone in a state that has acted: Illinois residents in particular are playing on a service their regulator has called illegal.
2. Players who buy Gold Coin packs for the bundled Sweeps Coins. Set a purchase limit by email before the first purchase.
3. Anyone who uploaded ID before 2022. Consider a credit freeze, which is free at all three US bureaus.
4. iPhone users: choose "Ask App Not to Track" when the app first opens.

How we scored it

Security (35) is the weakest factor, after a 2022 flaw exposed ID numbers and with no two-step log-in found. Scams and harmful content (38) reflects real-money casino play with tools that need an email. Privacy, transparency and control, and regulatory record tie at 40, the highest of its scores: privacy is limited by the unread policy and the label's missing ID data, control by tools that need an email, and the regulatory record is held up only by the absence of any fine.