Connecticut mom warns parents to monitor authorized purchases after her son spends $16K on a video game from the Apple store

A Connecticut mother has a message for parents after she said her 6-year-old son racked up thousands of dollars in in-app purchases while playing his favorite video game on an iPad.

The video above is about Phone apps that disguise themselves as calculators and phone settings apps that help teens hide things from their parents..

Wilton resident Jessica Johnson told “Good Morning America” ​​that over the summer, her son George spent a total of $16,293.10 in Apple App Store charges to buy rings in the Sonic Forces game. Johnson said her PayPal account had been linked to the iPad.

Johnson shared her experience with her Facebook group of moms in hopes that she could prevent this incident from happening again.

“As a mother of young children, I thought it was important for other parents to know,” Johnson said. “It’s unfortunate, because we’re all in a pandemic, we’re all working from home. We work really hard to keep our kids entertained while we’re doing work. (Sometimes) we’re inclined to say, ‘Here, grab the iPad. I think, Clearly, it failed in my case.”

Johnson, a real estate broker and mother of two, said she noticed on July 9 that the same charge of $106.34 appeared on her bank statement 12 times in a row. In a transaction report shared by Johnson with “GMA,” there were also minor charges of $53.16 and several more in the $200 to $600 range.

Johnson said he contacted his bank about the activity. The bank informed her in October that she would be responsible for the charges and suggested that she contact Apple. Johnson said she contacted Apple and Sega, the video game developer that owns Sonic the Hedgehog.

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Sega has not yet responded to “GMA”‘s request for comment.

Johnson said he received a call from Apple on Tuesday and the company agreed to refund a portion of his money.

“They refunded me $10,553.86,” he said, adding that he doesn’t know the significance of the dollar amount.

Apple confirmed to “GMA” that it was able to provide Johnson with a refund for all charges the company was able to identify.

“For more than a decade, the App Store has proven to be the safest and most trusted place to discover and download apps,” Apple told “GMA” in a statement, noting that its products have tools in place to help customers protect themselves. actively support themselves and their families

“We understand that errors can still occur and we work with customers to investigate, educate them on the tools available for their protection, and in this case, provide the customer with a refund,” Apple said.

Johnson said she had a password set on the iPad, which she and her children share, though she believes its settings allowed for a one-time password.

“I didn’t realize there was a setting where the child could continue shopping without the password after a certain amount of time,” he said. “There are several scenarios that I am now learning about.”

Apple said its customers have built-in tools to help parents manage their children’s device use. These resources are also intended to protect families from unauthorized charges within the app.

Tools include parental controls, the ability to set up an Apple ID for each family member, family sharing, and enabling “Ask to Buy,” where if kids want to buy or download a new item, they send a request to their family . organizer, who can then approve or reject the request.

According to Apple, customers can request a password for each purchase or request a password every 15 minutes. They can also choose how often they’d like to enter a password when purchasing items, including in-app purchases, from the App Store and iTunes Store.

“Always require” means that every time you make a purchase, you’ll be asked to enter your password, even if you’re signed in with your Apple ID.

“Require after 15 minutes” means that if a password was entered in the last 15 minutes, the customer will not be prompted to enter the password again.

Within parental controls, customers can manage in-app purchases and Ask to Buy, track family app usage, create app limits, only allow kid-safe apps, and set downtime. for specific times when apps and notifications are blocked.

Johnson said it was a positive result when Apple reached out to her to help fix the problem.

He said he wants to draw attention to how children’s games are designed.

“It’s intentionally designed to be a brain chemistry experience that one would get as an adult in a casino,” Johnson added.

In Sonic Forces, players compete for rings in exchange for upgrading characters. In-app purchases include 150 red star rings for $1.99 to a pack of 17,500 priced at $99.99.

Johnson said she asked her son if he remembered how many packs he clicked to buy, but she didn’t have a sure answer.

“He’s creating a compulsion to want to keep going,” Johnson said of the game. “I think that’s what prompted my son to keep pushing the button, get more players, run faster.”

News outlets picked up Johnson’s story after parents responded to her in social media groups, trading tips on maximizing privacy settings and sharing parenting tactics on handling kids and screen time.

Johnson said if you’re sharing a device, use the default settings you would for your child. “And look over your son’s shoulder,” he added. “Look at what they’re really seeing.”

Becky Worley, tech contributor and “GMA” correspondent, agreed. Many games that appeal to children have in-app purchases, and parents need to check them every time they download a game.

“Passwords are private. It may seem counterintuitive, like you’re keeping secrets from your kids, but it’s a way to protect them and yourself,” Worley said. “Children should not have access to any in-app purchases without parental supervision.”

Worley echoed Johnson, saying that parents should know what their children are doing online. Talk about things like in-app purchases, and better yet, play around with them, Worley said.

“Parents should ask questions like, ‘Who are you playing with?’ ‘What do you like about a game?’ and ‘When do you know you’ve played too much?'” Worley said, adding that parents should check devices to make sure kids can’t install apps without their permission and set up kids’ devices using parental controls so they Parents can monitor use from their own devices.

News outlets picked up Johnson’s story after parents responded to her in social media groups, trading tips on maximizing privacy settings and sharing parenting tactics on handling kids and screen time.

Johnson said if you’re sharing a device, use the default settings you would for your child. “And look over your son’s shoulder,” he added. “Look at what they’re really seeing.”

Becky Worley, tech contributor and “GMA” correspondent, agreed. Many games that appeal to children have in-app purchases, and parents need to check them every time they download a game.

“Passwords are private. It may seem counterintuitive, like you’re keeping secrets from your kids, but it’s a way to protect them and yourself,” Worley said. “Children should not have access to any in-app purchases without parental supervision.”

Worley echoed Johnson, saying that parents should know what their children are doing online. Talk about things like in-app purchases, and better yet, play around with them, Worley said.

“Parents should ask questions like, ‘Who are you playing with?’ ‘What do you like about a game?’ and ‘When do you know you’ve played too much?'” Worley said, adding that parents should check devices to make sure kids can’t install apps without their permission and set up kids’ devices using parental controls so they Parents can monitor use from their own devices.

One lesson is learning what money is, Samar said, which requires knowing how to make that concept tangible. “Even if they don’t earn money for chores, what would be the equivalent of paying back $16,000 at this age?” she asked.

Samar said the children might be happy to do some extra chores around the house if they are in debt. In this way, it is something they can control to make amends, especially if they feel guilty.

However, he added, it is important that parents not prolong the punishment and convey to the child that they are forgiven.

When it comes to technology use, Samar suggests making it a rule that kids go to mom or dad whenever something new appears on the screen.

“Instead of clicking on it, make these decisions together,” he said.

Samar added: “As the brain matures, we’re able to resist impulses more and more. But really, at the age of 6… it’s very hard not to[click]these fast-paced engagements within these apps. “.

The American Academy of Pediatrics told “Good Morning America” ​​in March that it recognized that children would be using more screen media during the pandemic “whether it’s for entertainment, education or social connection.”

One of the best organization tips for managing displays is to make a plan.

“Talk with your children about what your daily structure will be, how you will manage stress, and when you will take breaks from telecommuting or school work to relax and connect,” the AAP wrote on its website.

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