Originally posted by another user
Apple is set to will customers at least $32.5 million to settle a large amount of complaints over the last year that the technology company billed U.S. consumers for charges incurred by children buying mobile apps without their parents’ consent.
Under the terms of the agreement, announced today by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission, Apple will have to change its billing practices to ensure it gets consent from consumers before charging for items sold in mobile apps.
“Whether you’re doing business in the mobile arena or the mall down the street, fundamental consumer protections apply,” said FTC Chairwoman Edith Ramirez. “You cannot charge consumers for purchases they did not authorize.”
The problem with Apple’s practices in the past, was that it required a passcode to download an app, but after entering the passcode users were able to download anything they wanted in the 15 minute window before asking for another passcode. This is where many children were purchasing things without parents knowing.