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10 Mar 2011 20:45

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Tech: iOS 4.3: Now unsuspecting Smurfs can’t drain your bank account

  • If you’ve ever prowled the iPad App Store, you may have noticed a game called “Smurfs’ Village.” It’s one of the top-grossing apps in the entire iPad ecosystem, but there’s a reason behind that – it’s very expensive to play. The app, which is free, encourages you to buy random Smurf crap while playing – something you can do without a password for fifteen minutes after you download. The combination of popular brand, cute format and expensive in-app purchases is straight up deadly for kids unknowingly draining their parents’ credit cards. It even led to congressmen complaining and sending letters to Apple. Which is where iOS version 4.3 comes in. Now you need a password to buy in-app. Why wasn’t this a feature before, Apple? source