Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

Roblox: Ten-year-old spent £2,500 of mum's money without her knowing

Roblox: Ten-year-old spent £2,500 of mum's money without her knowing

A 10-year-old girl spent more than £2,500 on the gaming site Roblox after changing the password on her family's iPad tablet without her mum realising.

Georgina Munday, from Denbighshire is now warning parents to "be vigilant".

Tesco Bank initially refused a refund but reconsidered and apologised after BBC Radio Four consumer affairs show, You and Yours took up the case.

Roblox says it has "a robust policy" from unauthorised payments and Apple says pre-purchase alerts can be set up.

Roblox allows users to create their own games but also offers in app purchases to upgrade the user's avatar with things like clothes or accessories and offers some pay to play games.

Georgina Munday, 44, who lives in Dyserth, said her daughter, Primrose, who has autism, had been playing on her tablet for longer recently, because she is currently off school after struggling in mainstream education.

She initially thought someone had hacked Primrose's account but it soon became clear that the 10-year-old had managed to change the password to allow payments.

"We'd just seen hundreds of transactions, these payment confirmations, so then the panic set in - oh my gosh, whose card is this on?"

Primrose had managed to spend more than £2,500 on the site but most were small transactions of around £20.

For about a week, Georgina, who is a nurse, was in back and forth contact with Apple and her bank, Tesco Bank, trying to secure a refund but both refused - she said it was "a horrendous time".

"It was a really stressful time. I am not working at the minute, I am looking after my daughter. The last few months have been quite stressful, so maybe we have had our eye off the ball. I just thought I would have to pay it off in instalments over the next few years.

"I rang up Tesco Bank and they said, because it was my daughter, they couldn't do anything about it. So I tried Apple again - they just read me their terms and conditions. So that's when I contacted the BBC, You and Yours, consumer programme."

Within a day, Georgina said that Tesco Bank contacted her to say they would refund the full amount.

"I cried - it was just a relief, a weight off my shoulders."

Apple points out there are ways that accounts can be set up to alert a parent before a child wants to make a purchase.

It added that parents and guardians should not disclose passwords or enable FaceID and TouchID for their children and Ask to Buy should be set up so purchases need approval before going through.

Screen time being turned on will also enable parents to stop in-app purchases, it added.

Roblox players build the games, using the developer tools which the platform provides


Tesco Bank said: "We've carried out a further review of this case and have now agreed with Ms Munday that we'll refund her the full amount.

"We apologise to Ms Munday that this wasn't arranged for her when she first contacted us, and we've therefore also organised an additional payment to her as a gesture of goodwill."

Georgina said she does not feel happy to let her daughter play the game anymore.

"She knew what she was doing, she changed the password but I don't think she understood the enormity of it."

Georgina said parents need to "be vigilant" and know what their children are playing.

"Children are one step ahead of parents these days. We thought this Roblox game was quite innocent, it looks very basic. It's a whole world out there on this Roblox that we knew nothing about."

Roblox said: "Roblox has a robust policy for processing refund requests where there may have been unauthorised payments from a person's account.

"This process is detailed in our help centre here.

"Parents also have access to a suite of Parental Controls that can be used to determine how much their children can spend, and set spend notifications to increase visibility over their children's spending on Roblox."

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Volkswagen plans to shut at least three German plants, axe tens of thousands of jobs and slash pay by 10%
There's a reason the EU is putting huge tariffs on Chinese cars. They know you and your family want one.
Venice Extends Tourist Entry Fee Program to 2025
Vatican Synod Concludes with Support for Women in Leadership Roles
France just broke a crucial barrier for Russian deserters
Meta Enhances Scam Ad Detection with Facial Recognition
German Pizzeria Caught Selling Cocaine with Pizza
Russian Boxer Receives Lifetime Ban for Illegal Move in Boxing Debut
Biden Labels Trump a Threat to Democracy
North Dakota Woman Sentenced for Poisoning Boyfriend Over Illusory Inheritance
Russian Ambassador Claims UK's Proxy War in Ukraine
Proxy Resignation Services in Japan: A Growing Trend
NASA Study Explores Potential Microbial Life Beneath Mars' Ice
Cats: The Liquid-Like Pets
Xi Jinping Urges Troops to Prepare for Conflict Amid Taiwan Drills
Hamas Chief Yahya Sinwar Killed in Israeli Operation
Fruit Fly Gut Hormone Study Sheds Light on Human Longevity
Liam Payne's Tragic Death in Buenos Aires
Trump Criticizes Zelensky for Role in Ukraine-Russia War
Yahya Sinwar’s Death Marks Pivotal Moment in Gaza War
US Warns Israel of Potential Aid Cuts Over Gaza Assistance Delays
Meta Faces Legal Battle Over Teen Social Media Addiction
Russia's Call for a BRICS Financial System Alternative
Only A Third Of Europe's Surface Waters Are Healthy
Taiwan Records Unprecedented Chinese Military Activity Post-Drills
Israel Vows to Limit Retaliatory Strike on Iran to Military Facilities
British Influencer Dies Climbing Spain's Tallest Bridge
Four Killed in Tesla Electric Car Fire in France
Man with Weapons Arrested Near Trump Rally in California
China Conducts Military Drills Around Taiwan: A Strategic Warning
US Deploys THAAD Missile Defense System to Israel
DNA Evidence Suggests Christopher Columbus Was a Sephardic Jew
NASA Launches Europa Clipper Mission to Explore Jupiter's Moon
Tesla's Robotaxi Design Strikes Controversy
Poll Shows Trump Favored Over Harris in Handling Wars
Boeing to Reduce Workforce by 10% Amid Financial Strain
These robotic arms deliver a massage that can be customized to the user's needs
Prospect of UK Rejoining the EU Discussed by Peter Mandelson
Historic Floods Reshape Sahara Desert Landscape
Brazilian Man Arrested for Decades-long Abuse and Imprisonment of Family
EU Plans Sanctions on Iran for Missile Transfers to Russia
Nihon Hidankyo Wins Nobel Peace Prize
Donald Trump Amplifies Anti-Migrant Sentiments in Colorado Speech
Ireland Urges Israel to Cease Fire on UN Peacekeepers in Lebanon
Israel Marks Yom Kippur Under Multi-Front Conflict for First Time Since 1973
Elon Musk Unveils Tesla’s Optimus: The Most Ambitious Product Ever
China Faces Potential Overcapacity in AI Computing Power
China's EV Price War Reaches New Heights
Huawei Surpasses Apple in China Smartphone Sales for First Time in Nearly Four Years
William and Kate's First Public Appearance Post-Chemotherapy
×