Google to Pay Back $19M for App Purchases by Kids

[Kingofpants]

Are you saying the only reason kids play games is because their parents are neglecting them?

Do you play games? must be because you're parents are neglecting you.

Some kids like to play games and there is nothing wrong with that, this has nothing to do with parenting skills, it's about a product that people didn't understand, so the question is why? and was their lack of understanding reasonable given the circumstances?

Not me, I hold google to the same standards as apple as I see the situation is identical.

If you don't understand your using real money you shouldn't know your parents password.

Any kid over 8 should understand he's spending real money in this day and age. Unless he's the dullest Apple in the bunch in which case don't tell him your password.

[Kingofpants]

Google probably doesn't care, winning back X number of people into using there services is more important than 19 Million dollars.

[Yoinkerman]

Considering how misleading some of these apps and games can be, this is a good thing.

If you don't understand your using real money you shouldn't know your parents password.

Any kid over 8 should understand he's spending real money in this day and age. Unless he's the dullest Apple in the bunch in which case don't tell him your password.

[pk-man]

19m is nothing to Google. They are doing this for the PR

[AlwaysFSX]

If lives can be saved in any way, they should be. Simple as that.

 

I find it disgusting that you people are ready to put the burden of keeping cars safe on parents. I suppose when GM decided to make a few million cars that would just happen to shut off while running it was the parent's fault for not inspecting the ignition, hmm?

You find it disgusting a parent shouldn't be a blatant idiot and take their child out of a vehicle when it's 80+F outside? You're one of those people that loves a lot of safeties in place just so you don't have to think. Instead of being lazy use your damn brain. A defective design is something entirely different than a parent not THINKING to take their child out of a vehicle when those heat up to 140F. I find it disgusting how ignorant you are.

 

It's common sense to pay attention while driving but because people don't do that seat belts were invented and so are safer and safer cars. How hard is it really for Google to add a prevention feature? It isn't, so they have no reason not to which would stop this mess before it began. They were either living in a world where parents watch their children, or hoping parents wouldn't complain and could get a lot of extra money from the children. Either one is fantasy land.

Seat belts were invented for the main reason of car accidents that happen because of nature. You can pay attention but still take a slick corner and wipe out in to a tree. If you don't pay attention and hit something and go flying out of your windshield you were being an idiot in the first place and that's Darwinism working at it's best. How hard is it for a parent to think and sign out and lock their accounts with credit cards to prevent them from being charged. You aren't just going to give your child the pin to your debit card and not be surprised when they jack it and take all your money out at an ATM.

 

You two. Why is hard to accept that a parent needs to do their job being the parent of their child, not letting them do idiotic things. You have to think for all aspects of their lives when they're that young, if you can't keep yours in check making sure they can't run a tab on your bank account you're not fit to take care of a child.

[Deletive]

everytime I have a payment I have to put in my password. this isn't even googles fault!

[Imaginaerum]

You two. Why is hard to accept that a parent needs to do their job being the parent of their child, not letting them do idiotic things. You have to think for all aspects of their lives when they're that young, if you can't keep yours in check making sure they can't run a tab on your bank account you're not fit to take care of a child.

I never said parents shouldn't watch their kids, but you're living in a perfect world that doesn't exist. Nintendo has figured out this charging problem, and they're the most behind with online service of all the mildly AAA companies I can think of. Require a short password or 4 digit code before app's charge the credit card, that isn't difficult.

[AlwaysFSX]

I never said parents shouldn't watch their kids, but you're living in a perfect world that doesn't exist. Nintendo has figured out this charging problem, and they're the most behind with online service of all the mildly AAA companies I can think of. Require a short password or 4 digit code before app's charge the credit card, that isn't difficult.

But the problem is people are trying to pin the blame on other companies and make them pay for a parent's mistake. It's not the fault of the company that a parent accidentally allowed their kid buy things in a fashion they both know how. It is morally wrong to force a company to pay for the parent not being able to prevent this from happening when there are very clearly settings for children on the device.

[mr moose]

I play games. I'm an adult. I didn't play games when I had no idea what BUYING meant and my dad told me all about internet/credit card purchasing when I was a kid and bear in mind these were the late 90s, early 2000s when online scams were fairly new and people were falling for them often. So in those cases they were probably really young children that didn't understand the term PRUCHASE.

I see you point, letting your kid use a tablet/phone is NOT a bad thing. BUT in 80% of the times parents give them phones/tablets to have the children fuck off for a while so they can have some "free time".

 

I think you will find the number of parents who let their kids use the phone or tablet to keep them occupied or out of the way would be lower than 10% at best.  Working with both parents and children in early education, you get to know pretty quick whether the parent is absent or not and whether the child plays video games.

[That Norwegian Guy]

I'm with the court on this one. It is (in Norway anyway) illegal to not have some final verification that the owner of the credit card would know, when buying anything in an app or game. In this case the CVC number of the card. It's extremely simple, and the bare minimum security. In fact anyone who's been using the American stone age system of using one-click purchase systems without final authorization should be liable for billions, not millions, of dollars in damages. The US have a horrible ethic when it comes to credit cards. Even when going to a restaurant you don't even have to know a PIN number, it's absolutely mentally stunted.

[Bogica]

I think you will find the number of parents who let their kids use the phone or tablet to keep them occupied or out of the way would be lower than 10% at best.  Working with both parents and children in early education, you get to know pretty quick whether the parent is absent or not and whether the child plays video games.

Are you sure mate? Maybe it's more of a place where you live kind of thing. I see it here all the time, as people have long work hours here. Weather you agree with me on this or not, you must notice that parents care less and less about their children, I'm not saying there aren't those who care, but it's not what it was a few years back.

[Bogica]

I'm with the court on this one. It is (in Norway anyway) illegal to not have some final verification that the owner of the credit card would know, when buying anything in an app or game. In this case the CVC number of the card. It's extremely simple, and the bare minimum security. In fact anyone who's been using the American stone age system of using one-click purchase systems without final authorization should be liable for billions, not millions, of dollars in damages. The US have a horrible ethic when it comes to credit cards. Even when going to a restaurant you don't even have to know a PIN number, it's absolutely mentally stunted.

Same here, doesn't matter if you agreed to save the credit card info, for each purchase you will have to enter the CVC number and expiration date of the card.

[jezza39]

Don't leave your credit card details in the phone??!??! It's not fucking rocket science. Or you could supervise them, or not let them use it. Boo fucking hoo, what bullshit.

[mr moose]

Are you sure mate? Maybe it's more of a place where you live kind of thing. I see it here all the time, as people have long work hours here. Weather you agree with me on this or not, you must notice that parents care less and less about their children, I'm not saying there aren't those who care, but it's not what it was a few years back.

 

yep, very sure, Both I and my wife work in areas that are low SES and affluent,  we also work with neglected kids and kids that should be in state care.  Doing what we do you really get to see the reality of humanity.

 

I am sure there are a few places where it certainly looks the way you are describing, and I can definitely vouch for the fact it is getting worse as jobs get more demanding and time for everything else becomes rare, but I don't think it is that bad yet.

[Bogica]

yep, very sure, Both I and my wife work in areas that are low SES and affluent,  we also work with neglected kids and kids that should be in state care.  Doing what we do you really get to see the reality of humanity.

 

I am sure there are a few places where it certainly looks the way you are describing, and I can definitely vouch for the fact it is getting worse as jobs get more demanding and time for everything else becomes rare, but I don't think it is that bad yet.

Glad to hear you are in such a noble line of work, both you and your wife, keep it up! Hope you keep your faith in humanity, even though we are scum, there are still decent people out there.

[BallGum]

Should the cars not be unlockable from the inside or possibly have some prevention method to stop that from happening? Google should add some way to make it harder for kids to accidentally charge on apps and parents should pay attention. Both help.

Google already has several methods that prevent this.

[euniqe]

come on, $19m is a drop in the ocean for Google. Their reputation is far more valuable to them.

[Nomelas]

Google already has several methods that prevent this.

yep, and if parents are saving their CC numbers into their Google account and giving it to kids to use it's the parents negligence. Firstly you can opt to not save CC info on your account, secondly you can set to ask for a password every time you make a purchase. I believe this is on by default so parents are intentionally turning them off to make life easier for them. Well shitty for you that convenience cost you however much money your kid just spent with it - it's not anyone's fault but parents.

[Builder]

You find it disgusting a parent shouldn't be a blatant idiot and take their child out of a vehicle when it's 80+F outside? You're one of those people that loves a lot of safeties in place just so you don't have to think. Instead of being lazy use your damn brain. A defective design is something entirely different than a parent not THINKING to take their child out of a vehicle when those heat up to 140F. I find it disgusting how ignorant you are.

There's so many ad hominems, straw men, and false equivalencies in that post I'm not even going to reply to what you addressed until you apologize and rephrase your statement.

[AlwaysFSX]

There's so many ad hominems, straw men, and false equivalencies in that post I'm not even going to reply to what you addressed until you apologize and rephrase your statement.

I'm not going to apologize to someone that every argument, doesn't understand morality or the simple idea of a parent being a parent.

[Builder]

I'm not going to apologize to someone that every argument, doesn't understand morality or the simple idea of a parent being a parent.

Every argument? How many arguments have we had about parenting? I don't think very highly of you, from what I can tell you have no respect for neither rights nor logic. As such it is pointless to continue.

 

Good day.

[virtualTune]

Every argument? How many arguments have we had about parenting? I don't think very highly of you, from what I can tell you have no respect for neither rights nor logic. As such it is pointless to continue.

 

Good day.

Hey we haven't had any argument yet

 

Anyways, do you think Google should pay because they didn't implement a feature to keep children from being able to buy all these apps, or are you more upset about the fact that such a feature (a warning prompt when you are about to spend money) did not exist in general?

[AlwaysFSX]

Hey we haven't had any argument yet

 

Anyways, do you think Google should pay because they didn't implement a feature to keep children from being able to buy all these apps, or are you more upset about the fact that such a feature (a warning prompt when you are about to spend money) did not exist in general?

Both exist actually.

[virtualTune]

Both exist actually.

I guess they have to password lock them or something now. 

[Nomelas]

Every argument? How many arguments have we had about parenting? I don't think very highly of you, from what I can tell you have no respect for neither rights nor logic. As such it is pointless to continue.

 

Good day.

Sorry to chime in so late but @AlwaysFSX is making a lot of sense here and I'm going to agree with him. Defects (something that should be working but isn't) that result in the loss of life is 100% the responsibility of the car manufacturer, this is neglect on the manufacturers not the parent and they should be held responsible for this (and they are). Neglect of a child's safety when preventative measures could have been taken on the parents part are the responsibly of the parent. It's not the parents fault for the defect of a car and your argument makes no logical sense. Parents have preventative options when it's hot out, they have AC, opening windows, taking the kids out of the vehicle. The same principle can be applied to this specific situation with Google. The onus is on the parent in this situation.