Gamblock - beats the others hands down
Previous to purchasing Gamblock® my family purchased [imitator] as suggested by [help site] in the UK, as [imitator] was cheaper we went for that option. After an android update on my phone (Samsung) [imitator] simply stopped working. It required me to re-enter the password and as I didn't know the password, and didn't want to bother my family, I just ignored it - at my peril! After only a few months protection I was able to easily gamble and had a terrible relapse.
Thankfully a relative works in IT and stepped in to help. They looked at all the blocking software options on the market and said hands down Gamblock® was the best as it was absolutely impossible to remove it or for it to stop working on a system update. So we got a refund from [imitator] and invested in Gamblock®. Since having Gamblock for well over a year I have been 100% fine, had no relapses, nearly cleared all of my debt and have started saving. I couldn't recommend it highly enough.
I do feel frustrated sometimes when there is an app I can't install that to me I wouldn't associate with gambling but Gamblock is onto all the latest tricks and attempts to sneak gambling into apps either via advertising or in other ways.
What I would say is this: yes Gamblock frustrates me at times when I just want to click on something and access it straight away and I do feel embarrassed sometimes that things I ask for access to have to be approved (or not) by a family member (in my case a family member is my nominated counsellor or specialist) but these things pale into insignificance when compared to how desperate I was (suicidal) at my worst levels. I would have given anything to never be in that situation again and so when I get frustrated that Gamblock stops me having so much freedom, I remind myself what it has helped me to achieve and I couldn't be more grateful for having this complex and thorough technology installed.
There was an initial period of some difficulties in response times from customer services but this was an isolated problem and was corrected by the owners. I have spoken with Gamblock management many times now, they are patient and very understanding and they take all feedback onboard, which is great because they acknowledge that technology is not fixed, it is evolving and I find it encouraging that they are constantly developing and improving. They encourage users to report any gambling that is found in any app and I have done so straight away and it can be blocked immediately and added to their list. To be honest I am quite shocked at how many ways gambling sites will target you and some of my best loved apps have updated and allowed more gambling to be possible, Facebook for example. I'm super frustrated but I accept that Gamblock is carrying out the task I have paid them for - block all gambling possibilities - and it does that, very well!
So in summary, [imitator]? Useless and I am very disappointed that [imitator] is promoted by [help site] in the UK. From a technical point of view it is not fit for purpose.
Gamblock®? EXCELLENT. Worth the money, the frustration and your time because it absolutely stops you from gambling. My family member told me to accept my frustrations because there is nothing on the market as effective as Gamblock and there are no more secure options than this. My family member works in programming and said don't waste money on a product that can just leave you unprotected after a standard android update, that my family was trying to save my life and this was the only software they had found that was set up in the way that would fully protect me.
I'm very grateful to Gamblock for safeguarding me for well over a year now, for always helping, listening and staying at the forefront of developments with online gambling - it is so dangerous and damaging and it took me to a very dark place. My life is better, my feeling of self worth has returned with every penny I have been able to pay back and I have had very few urges to gamble, to be honest it is impossible to do so with Gamblock and I feel safe because of that. Also my family feels better, we have been able to build trust again which for me is priceless.
I have given 5 stars, I thought well maybe I should take 1 star off because I find it frustrating but we asked them to protect me and to stop me from gambling and they have, my frustrations are so very insignificant compared to losing my life to gambling so yes, Gamblock deserves 5 stars.
P.s. I realised in order to overcome gambling, I would have to put in effort, it isn't all about the blocking software. I have attended online 1:1 therapy and group therapy with [help site] in the UK and that helped me a lot but I think learning patience has been hard as well. We live in a world where we press a screen or click a button and we want something instantly, I'm guilty of this, we all are. So when Gamblock gets in the way of me clicking on things I want and like, I get annoyed, but that is my problem! I have even thrown a strop about having to go onto an old brick mobile phone without a touchscreen because I have been accustomed to having and using the latest technology at will. It is no bad thing to sometimes unplug from this technology and engage in healthier pastimes. I have spent more time reading, being creative and talking with friends since not being able to gamble. That takes effort and Gamblock can't do all the work. I see it as they protect you while you work on you and figure out why and how you became addicted or lost.
I realised it was very easy to fall into the trap of online gambling and a sad reflection of society and gambling companies with no morals and governments allowing this technology to invade our online lives and bombard us. Governments need to do more, not just act after the fact but prevent the gambling in the first place. If cigarettes have warnings and have been stripped of all advertising, then gambling should be the same. It is a killer and should be recognised as such. I have never had a life long gambling addiction, I was lonely and didn't have much money and it hooked me in, after just a few months I was ready to die, it was killing me much faster than cigarettes.
Thanks to Gamblock® I am alive and here to tell the tale. I read some of the other reviews on here and the frustrations, all I will say is Gamblock is technically better than anything else I have found or tried, you are asking it to stop you gambling and that's what it is doing! Am I frustrated that apps like Facebook are now risky? Yes! But I'm not frustrated at Gamblock I'm frustrated at Facebook. Be careful to aim your frustration in the right direction and be patient, Rome wasn't built in a day, there is no one click fixes all solution to gambling but Gamblock is one of the most helpful tools to help you beat gambling, that plus your patience and hard work.
Thank you to the developers at Gamblock for their consistency and for their technical expertise, they are doing a very good job at helping to solve a huge worldwide problem and they genuinely care about the people they are trying to help.
Rhyl, Wales
If this testimonial raises any issues for you, please contact the Samaritans in your country, Gamblers Anonymous or use or our help information.