'True Education' Covers Teen Gambling, Now at Serious Levels in Reality.. One Lost 240 Million Won [PD Notebook]

*This content was translated by AI.

'PD Notebook' will cover teen gambling.

On the 11th, MBC's 'PD Notebook' will investigate the reality and hidden aspects of teen gambling.

Teen gambling, which became a hot topic after being featured in dramas 'True Education' and 'Model Taxi 3', has reached serious levels in real classrooms. According to an actual survey by the Korea Problem Gambling Prevention and Recovery Institute, approximately 150,000 teenagers have experienced gambling. With easier access to illegal online gambling sites via smartphones, teens are being exposed without protection.

Among the gambling-addicted teenagers interviewed by the 'PD Notebook' team were honor students attending foreign language high schools and promising first-place winners in national competitions. Many children first encountered gambling through friends in class, with amounts lost through illegal online gambling ranging from as little as 5 million won to as much as 240 million won. Some children resorted to taking money from their parents' wallets or selling family jewelry to raise gambling funds. One parent pleaded, "Is this really my child? I wanted to die together."

Experts cite the 'incomplete brain' as a critical reason for teen gambling. The analysis suggests that children whose frontal lobes—responsible for impulse control—are not fully developed struggle to withstand the intense stimulation of gambling.

Secondary damage caused by gambling is also severe. The civic group 'Schools Without Gambling' Jo Ho-yeon (CEO) emphasized that the risks stemming from secondary consequences are even more dangerous than gambling itself. A high school senior, Student A, became addicted to gambling last year, borrowed 300,000 won from a friend, and was forced to repay 450,000 won within just one week.

Another friend demanded a Wi-Fi usage fee of 30,000 won per hour for gambling at their home, with the amount doubling every day. Friends even coerced others into committing second-hand transaction scams and filming abuse videos to repay gambling debts.

The reality of 'general agents'—recruiters for illegal gambling sites—was also revealed. A whistleblower who worked at an illegal gambling site generating annual sales of around 300 billion won stated that the general agent operator, known as 'Manager Bong', has evaded law enforcement for over a decade and enjoys a luxurious lifestyle through illegal profits. Video released by the whistleblower shows 'Manager Bong' rolling high-denomination banknotes into shot glasses and scattering them at a club in Southeast Asia.

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*This content was translated by AI.