Lawsuit Reveals How Facebook Profited Off Confused Children: Report (salon.com) 96
Documents outlining how Facebook profited off children are expected to be made public soon, according to Reveal News of the Center for Investigative Reporting (CIR), who requested the documents. From a report: In a report about the trove of previously-sealed documents, Reveal News explains that Facebook has previously faced lawsuits for failing to refund charges made by children playing games on Facebook. According to Reveal, the children did not know that their parent's credit card was stored on the platform when they clicked "buy," and in some cases, hundreds or even thousands of dollars were spent. In one case, the plaintiff, who is a child, spent several hundreds of dollars in just a few weeks. According to the report, more documents show "widespread confusion by children and their parents, who didn't understand Facebook continued to charge them as they played games."
What dunderhead... (Score:1)
...registers a credit card with facebook? Or a phone, for that matter. It is a trap, and idiots walk into it.
I'm confused... (Score:3)
I'm confused. I've never been a Facebook member, but from what I understood it was a free platform funded by advertising. Why does Facebook have anyone's credit card on file in the first place?
Re: I'm confused... (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Game on Facebook, charged through Facebook (Score:5, Informative)
Why does Facebook have anyone's credit card on file in the first place?
If you read the first part of the article (ahem), it says:
The child, referred to as âoeI.B.â in the case, did not know the social media giant had stored his momâ(TM)s payment information. As he continued to play the game, Ninja Saga, Facebook continued to charge his momâ(TM)s credit card, racking up several hundred dollars in just a few weeks.
But unlike iOS or Android, where often kids overcharging without parents knowing about it and they get refunded, Facebook was apparently a lot less lenient about refunds.
Re: (Score:3)
The child, referred to as ÃoeI.B.Ã in the case
I'd sue my parents for giving me a name that won't render properly on Slashdot.
Re: (Score:2)
I'd sue my parents for giving me a name that won't render properly on Slashdot.
I just figured he was related to Prince.
Re: (Score:2)
Better known as ampersand.
Re: (Score:2)
I'm confused. I've never been a Facebook member, but from what I understood it was a free platform funded by advertising.
You are indeed confused. Facebook is also a game and app platform. Non-advertising revenue is falling, and they are heading toward a more "pure" ad model, but they still make about $150M per quarter from games and apps vs about $13B from ads.
Re: (Score:2)
Wow, that's a nice expensive digital baby sitter you have there.
Actually, it isn't. When my son was in daycare, it cost $800 per month. Facebook is way cheaper than that.
Honestly, people gave Facebook their credit card numbers?
Yes. In my case, my son needed it to buy some virtual Smurfberries. He bought two bushels for $5 each. There have never been any other charges.
Fuckerberg is evil (Score:1, Interesting)
Both Facebook and Google live by surreptitiously collecting data on you - data that you wouldn't tell them - and then selling it.
That's evil.
Most people don't understand the issues. (Score:2)
Mod parent UP! To +10. (Okay, 5.)
When I go to a bank website, often NoScript tells me there are links to Google Analytics, Google Tag Manager, and other Google services.
I think banks, medical facilities, and government entities should not be allowed to connect to web addresses they don't own.
Re: Most people don't understand the issues. (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Non-story: This happened on Google Play and iTunes (Score:3, Informative)
Re: (Score:1)
Re: (Score:1)
Facebook declined the refunds calling the child "a whale." That pushes the behavior from being an accident to deliberate policy to take financial advantage of mistakes made by children, both a PR nightmare and illegal.
Re:Non-story: This happened on Google Play and iTu (Score:4, Insightful)
To be fair, the companies added the ability to require a passcode to be punched in before a purchase would go through. But then as you say, they also gave you the option to have the device remember the passcode so you wouldn't have to punch it in all the time.
Given that children are necessary for the species to survive, the proper solution is to allow child accounts. These are accounts which have access to apps purchased by the parent account, but which have no purchase privileges themselves. I can understand why the companies are reluctant to do it though - it means you can let your friends use the apps you buy by setting them up with a child account. Google added this capability a few years back [google.com] (dunno about Facebook or Apple), but hasn't publicized it well. So many parents continue to use their main account on their children' devices.
Re: (Score:2)
Uh, what excuses the parents from initially refusing to buy any Facebook apps for their children until Facebook comes to their senses about their unworkable revenue security model?
Man, I can't wait for the day when there's a consumer JARVIS who goes *cough* *cough* "you know, there's presently no way to purchase an app from Facebook that doesn't allow your children to make in-game purchases on your credit card."
Parent: "What, they don't even have a password or something."
JARVIS: "Well, they do, but on past
This is child abuse (Score:3)
Null AND Void (Score:5, Interesting)
Re: (Score:3)
In the US, minors can't sign contracts. Any contract with a minor is considered 'null and void'.
Tell that to all the people who signed up for student loans at 17.
Re: (Score:3)
A) You may find that people under age 25 who received a student loan had their parents signature in multiple places, because you have to disclose family income. If not, then they signed other forms claiming to be an orphan or something.
B) If they're still 17 and were admitted to the school and were given the loan without any parental approval, and they drop all their classes after the cutoff date for the term, they may indeed be able to challenge enforcement of the charges for that term. But obviously any c
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:3)
https://law.freeadvice.com/gen... [freeadvice.com]
Re: (Score:2)
law in the US does not recognize a contract with someone under the age of majority... usually 18
https://law.freeadvice.com/gen [freeadvice.com]...
I note your citation itself cites nothing, which makes it... worthless. But that's no surprise, because free legal advice is worth every penny spent on it.
Re: (Score:2)
Most lawyers shouldn't either.
Indeed. Lawyers have specialties. If you ask a divorce lawyer for advice on intellectual property law, you will likely get less accurate information than what you can find for free on Wikipedia.
If you have a 30 minute appointment with a lawyer, then spend 2 hours doing independent research ahead of time, and write down questions and things that need to be clarified. Keep the meeting focused. This will save you a lot of money.
Re:Null AND Void (Score:4, Interesting)
I believe from the very beginning, Facebook's business social model was and continues to be mostly illegal. In the US, minors can't sign contracts. Any contract with a minor is considered 'null and void'. Therefore minors can not agree to any ELU (end user license agreement). Thus any data collect by the activity of a minor is illegally obtained.
This is "stupidly wrong and wouldn't survive the first page of search results if you bothered to check before making the claim."
In the US, minors can enter into contracts. By signing them. However, contract terms can't generally be enforced against minors. But they are still financially responsible for any goods or services they receive under the contract.
The net result is that minors can cancel a contract at any time, regardless of the details of the contract, and they don't owe you anything at all if they return the goods, or if the service wasn't rendered for whatever reason including that their parents didn't let them finish doing it. So it is a really bad idea to engage in contracts with minors.
And unless you're a lawyer, never move forwards to "thus." Those will always be wrong. Find out what lawyers say about it, choose one of those things, and repeat it. That's the only way to move from "words about the law" to "implications thereof."
Re: (Score:1)
Re: (Score:2)
Don't forget to include some ideas with your words next time. It shouldn't be that hard, you didn't manage very many words.
Re: (Score:2)
No, dumb-ass, your words are posted right there where you put them.
There was no gate.
You words were merely stupid, and I said words accusing them of lacking value.
You wish there was a gate, so you could keep it, but there isn't, so we both get to post our opinions.
Re: (Score:2)
So it is a really bad idea to engage in contracts with minors.
That depends on your margins. If you are selling digital goods with a marginal cost of $0, you have nothing at risk, and thus nothing to lose if a refund is demanded.
Re: (Score:2)
That's a lot of assumptions, though. If they're all true, then yeah.
What if there are potential liabilities beyond just the cost of providing the service? What then?!?
Re: (Score:2)
That is not entirely true... it depends on the state. In my state it's 18 unless emancipated then as young as 16 or at 16 you can get a loan with an adult co-signer. Of course you still can't purchase alcohol, tobacco, or firearms until you reach the regular age.
Re: (Score:2)
Erm (Score:3)
I'm assuming Facebook must have their own payment system ... surely most FB users don't have a credit card on file with them?
OK, so for those who do ... why would you let your child play with your FB account then?
Do you let your children play with your Amazon account? Or your physical wallet?
Re: (Score:2)
I think most parents do let their kids play with their wallets.
TOS/EULA Always Require Arbitration (Score:2)
Here's your $2 coupon for a free slurpee. Thank you for playing
Re: TOS/EULA Always Require Arbitration (Score:1)
Agree that Uber cannot force arbitration in this or most any other way similar to the ban on shrink wrap licenses, especially if there is no customer/seller relationship in the first place.
I would also suggest that you consider how many people might read your last sentence and contemplate literal violence? I think there must be a better way to indicate displeasure?
Just my two cents lol
Re: (Score:2)
This arbitration shit has to stop, and it certainly can't be allowed to supersede applicable laws. Sorry, I'm not subject to the laws of the Netherlands, and your arbitration is bullshit designed to ensure you can just do what you like with no recourse.
Don't worry, contracts cannot supersede the law. If your law says you always have the right to go to court, then you do, whether the contract says that you have to go to arbitration or not. A court may look unfavorably on you if you do not at least attempt to solve your problem first through arbitration, but in theory they will still apply the law.
What would be nice, though, would be to make it illegal to pen a contract which contradicts the law. That is effectively the case sometimes. For example New Jerse
So you get confused, then you blame Facebook? (Score:2)
According to the report, more documents show "widespread confusion by children and their parents, who didn't understand Facebook continued to charge them as they played games."
Let me say it right away. I loathe Facebook, do not see [any] value in it and do not use it in any way.
But on the other hand, why should one blame FB for failing to understand it, or its business practices?
Who let these kids have access to the gadgets they used to access Facebook? Why blame FB for your failure to understand it? I just do not get it!
Re: (Score:2)
Not just facebook (Score:3)
Re: (Score:1)
Kind of idiotic, tying your CC number to a kid's Xbox Live account, when there are these things called 'gift cards' that you should be using instead. Easy to obtain (everywhere sells gift cards now, grocery stores, Walgreens, even Home Depot) or virtual codes that you can buy from Amazon in about 30 seconds. There are also Facebook gift cards, that would accomplish the same thing.
OUTLAW FACEBOOK (Score:2)