Apple's Wi-Fi Assist function has resulted in the family of one San Francisco teen receiving a monthly cell phone bill of over $2,000. The feature, which Apple rolled out with iOS 9, automatically switches a device running the OS from a weak Wi-Fi connection to cellular data usage.
The feature has already resulted in two class action lawsuits that spell out users' objections to it by complaining that Apple has created a function that provides no warning when a user's iPhone switches from Wi-Fi to cellular data. In addition, the feature is employed by default, which means that millions of iPhone users were automatically opted in without specifically requesting it or choosing to employ it in their settings menu.
One of those iPhone users is Ashton Finegold. The California teen was shocked when he recently ran up a bill totaling $2,021.07, as opposed to the usual $250 or so that he was used to receiving. Apparently, Finegold's bedroom is in an area that gets weak Wi-Fi coverage, and the new iOS 9 Wi-Fi Assist feature automatically kicked into gear and switched him to his carrier's wireless data connection, on which he proceeded to rack up 144 GB of data.
While Finegold did receive a warning that he was about to reach his monthly data limit, he had no idea to which extent because he didn't realize he had the new feature. That's the same argument made in the class action lawsuits. Apple, meanwhile, contends that, although Wi-Fi Assist can indeed cause increased use of cellular data, for most users, the increase in usage should be minor.
Obviously, that was not the result in Finegold's case, along with many others. It seems as if this is a problem that Apple could, and should, have easily anticipated and provided for. While we realize that activating the feature by default may have been a well-meaning move intended to aid less tech-savvy users who otherwise might never have been aware of the feature or how to employ it, there's no reason why a warning pop-up couldn't be built into the function to alert users that they are currently using cellular data as opposed to the Wi-Fi they believe they are still connected to.
Meanwhile, iPhone users who want to avoid a similar issue can do so from the settings menu, by selecting "Cellular," scrolling down to "Wi-Fi Assist" and switching it off.
