Parent angry Apple didn't stop 10-year-old's $2,500 TikTok spree
A parent has complained about Apple's refusal to refund 23 successive in-app purchases made by his 10-year-old daughter, who was convinced to pay money to a TikTok creator.
Apple has repeatedly been the target of criticism from parents after children made high-priced purchases on iPhones and iPads without parental permission. In the latest story, it seems that part of the criticism should have been applied to video sharing app TikTok.
In a letter to the U.K.'s Telegraph, a reader identified as "AH" says they had given their 10-year-old daughter with autism and "learning difficulties" an iPhone as a Christmas present. Four days later, the child then made a considerable number of in-app purchases, buying 2,012 pounds ($2,486) in coins for TikTok.
The parent discovered the purchases only after Apple sent invoices to their inbox. The parent then went through various processes to try and get refunds for the 23 purchases, but they were refused. After attempting to contact the company, including its Irish HQ, they were then given a link to Apple's legal processes, which "gives very little information at all."
"This is such a lot of money to lose in the space of a few minutes in this way," writes AH. "I believe Apple has let me down by failing to identify the unusual activity on my account and protecting me by blocking the suspicious payments. I also feel its customer care has been nonexistent."
In investigating the purchases, the outlet's response reveals the parent didn't activate any child safety controls on the iPhone before handing it to their child. Such controls can prevent purchases from being performed, and limit what a child can do on their iPhone.
The parent had, to their credit, previously activated the controls on the child's earlier iPhone, but just didn't do so on the new model.
On contacting TikTok over the account the payments were towards, it was found that the user had four million followers, and was verified by the service. Initially, TikTok said it had investigated, and said no rules had been broken, but didn't explain what the payment was for.
When pressed further to investigate, TikTok then discovered the user, "Ohidur247," had breached guidelines relating to fraud and scams. They were taking payments in exchange for followers.
The report then contacted Apple, who agreed to refund the parent in full, as well as reminding them of the presence of parental controls. The reporter commented that the payment system "should have flagged up suspicious activity and blocked the payments," similar to anti-fraud measures performed by banks.
Despite the investigation and the return of funds, it seems that TikTok isn't actively punishing Ohidur247 for breaking its rules. Though that TikTok user has lost the ability to live-stream, the account is still active and verified.
Read on AppleInsider
Apple has repeatedly been the target of criticism from parents after children made high-priced purchases on iPhones and iPads without parental permission. In the latest story, it seems that part of the criticism should have been applied to video sharing app TikTok.
In a letter to the U.K.'s Telegraph, a reader identified as "AH" says they had given their 10-year-old daughter with autism and "learning difficulties" an iPhone as a Christmas present. Four days later, the child then made a considerable number of in-app purchases, buying 2,012 pounds ($2,486) in coins for TikTok.
The parent discovered the purchases only after Apple sent invoices to their inbox. The parent then went through various processes to try and get refunds for the 23 purchases, but they were refused. After attempting to contact the company, including its Irish HQ, they were then given a link to Apple's legal processes, which "gives very little information at all."
"This is such a lot of money to lose in the space of a few minutes in this way," writes AH. "I believe Apple has let me down by failing to identify the unusual activity on my account and protecting me by blocking the suspicious payments. I also feel its customer care has been nonexistent."
In investigating the purchases, the outlet's response reveals the parent didn't activate any child safety controls on the iPhone before handing it to their child. Such controls can prevent purchases from being performed, and limit what a child can do on their iPhone.
The parent had, to their credit, previously activated the controls on the child's earlier iPhone, but just didn't do so on the new model.
On contacting TikTok over the account the payments were towards, it was found that the user had four million followers, and was verified by the service. Initially, TikTok said it had investigated, and said no rules had been broken, but didn't explain what the payment was for.
When pressed further to investigate, TikTok then discovered the user, "Ohidur247," had breached guidelines relating to fraud and scams. They were taking payments in exchange for followers.
The report then contacted Apple, who agreed to refund the parent in full, as well as reminding them of the presence of parental controls. The reporter commented that the payment system "should have flagged up suspicious activity and blocked the payments," similar to anti-fraud measures performed by banks.
Despite the investigation and the return of funds, it seems that TikTok isn't actively punishing Ohidur247 for breaking its rules. Though that TikTok user has lost the ability to live-stream, the account is still active and verified.
Read on AppleInsider
Comments
It’s TikTok’s fault!
It’s the TikTok creator’s fault!
It can’t possibly be my fault!
And as education levels gradually fall we come ever closer to the crazy world created in the film Idiocracy.
They deserved the "fine" and I agree with Apple's initial decision.
Somehow not surprised that the "blame everyone but themselves" parents managed to weasel their way out of paying the charges in the end... (Insert sarcastic congratulations)
https://appleinsider.com/articles/20/12/22/apple-working-on-technology-to-finally-allow-ios-devices-to-support-multiple-users <--
Is this something that could be announced at WWDC '22? Dub Dub Double Double.
I disagree. These parents get no credit at all. All this tells me is that they knew better and should bear all the blame here.
Um, you realize you're just adding a row to the "someone else's fault" list. lol
Well, that's arguably true anyway. TikTok charged the money, not Apple. When you buy something at Home Depot, get it home, and it's broken, you take it up with Home Depot, not Visa or your bank. (Yes, you can fall back to them, but they're not the responsible party - they're not the ones you would sue, if it came to that, for example. Purchase guarantees are just a service they provide.)
still don’t want to take responsibility for bad parenting or being absent minded.
This one is especially bad because the child is autistic and one would think that a child like that should be protected from ANY exploitation. I have spoken to parents of autistic children and they do not ever allow their child to have a payment system on the device without being present to supervise the purchase and to verify that the child is purchasing the correct thing.