Smurf Village $100 iOS credit card orders shock parents

Playing games on various platforms such as Android or iOS isn’t a big deal, since the games generally don’t cost more than a few bucks, not to mention they’re often free. That being said, with Apple enabling in-app purchases, many parents out there are finding out the hard way that they need to be a little more careful. Many reports are in that children are purchasing expensive Smurfberries in the free game Smurf Village. The fancy berries allow users to progress in the game and while they may grow freely on trees, it’s much faster to purchase them, such as a wheelbarrow full of them, which will set you back $60. There are reports of parents being hit with bills over $100 due to these purchases, though some have managed to get refunds after complaining. The username and password of the iTunes account with a credit card is still needed, but since it’s still valid for 15 minutes after an authorization, kids can easily make these purchases if their parents just entered the password to install and update or download an app. If you’re sweating in fear right now, you might want to disable in-app purchases on your device right now.

Matthew Chung
Categories: Apple, Gaming
Tags: App Store, Apple Inc, games, iOS