The Apple iPad is one of the most popular tablets among adults and children alike. One dad, however, was shocked to find that his 7-year-old son had spent £4,000, or about $5,900, while playing Jurassic World on the Apple tablet.
Mohamed Shugaa, a 32-year-old father from Crawley in West Sussex, said that he was aware that his son Faisall knew the unlocking code for his iPad. However, Shugaa did not know that Faisall had also memorized Shugaa's Apple ID password, which can do more than the code used to unlock the iPad.
According to the Metro, Shugaa found out about the high bill when he tried to purchase online with his iPad. Shugaa called his bank and was informed that his Apple ID was used on iTunes to make 65 transactions between Dec. 13 and Dec. 18, 2015.
Shugaa then found that Faisall had upgraded dinosaurs using virtual currency, Dino Bucks, while playing Jurassic World. However, Faisall was not aware that his father would have to pay a high price for upgrading dinosaurs in the game.
"I was so mad. I'm 32 years old, why would Apple think I would be spending thousands of pounds on buying dinosaurs and upgrading a game?" said Shugaa. "Why didn't they email me to check I knew these payments were being made? I got nothing from them. How much longer would it have gone on for?"
Shugga said that he contacted Apple Support and asked for a refund, but the company initially stated that there was no guarantee that he would get his money back for his child's fault. However, Shugaa was able to convince Apple by saying that he needed the money for buying Christmas presents for his family.
While Shugaa was lucky to get a refund, it is the responsibility of parents that their children cannot make online purchases without their permission.
The Apple ID password can be used for making purchases online and, once entered, a user can make multiple purchases. Apple recommends users have a strong Apple ID password that is difficult to guess.
"Apple policy requires you use strong passwords with your Apple ID. Your password must have 8 or more characters and include upper and lowercase letters, and at least one number. You can also add extra characters and punctuation marks to make your password even stronger," said Apple.
The company also introduced the Touch ID feature during the iPad Air 2 and iPad mini 3 launch in October 2014. Touch ID adds extra security to iDevices and, at the same time, allows for easy online purchases.
"Your fingerprint is the perfect password. You always have it with you. And no one can ever guess what it is. Our breakthrough Touch ID technology uses a unique fingerprint identity sensor to make unlocking your iPad Air 2 easy and secure," said Apple.
Apple recommends iPad owners with Touch ID enable the feature for making all online payments.
The company normally sends receipts of all purchases to a user's inbox, but it seems that Shugaa did not check his email or see the emails sent to him regarding the purchases made by his son on iTunes.
Customers who value their account security should always check their messages regarding their account, which are sent by companies such as Apple to ensure that their ID has not been compromised, knowingly or unknowingly.
Photo: Brad Flickinger | Flickr
