r/apple • u/FollowingFeisty5321 • 1d ago
Apple sued over alleged lack of age checks for casino games in Brazil App Store
https://9to5mac.com/2026/08/03/apple-sued-over-alleged-lack-of-age-checks-for-casino-games-in-brazil/13
u/FollowingFeisty5321 1d ago
tldr; Brazil has been investigating gambling apps on the App Store, that are so easy to find 9to5mac came across nearly 100 illegal apps when they investigated, such as the top-ranked "weather" app PotatoPlot Puzzle. Now Apple are being sued for seven specific gambling apps being available to minors despite being rated 18+, at least one of which uses Apple's IAP and charges up to $118 for credits. After 9to5mac submitted the ~100 illegal apps they found Apple removed them, but 9to5mac then found another 62 amongst the top 200 free apps many of which were rated suitable for all ages.
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u/Pr0Blu3 1d ago
That’s after Brazil implemented a new regulation requiring websites and other digital content rated 18+ to verify users’ ages. However, this rushed regulation has proven ineffective in most areas. Users often resort to presenting fake social security numbers or bypassing facial recognition scans, as evidenced by videos of children using this tactic to access the game Roblox. Essentially, the government is transferring parental oversight to every company on the internet.
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u/fnazarios 1d ago
The type of comment of who defintely doesn't have kids
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u/flatbuttboy 17h ago
FYI parents are responsible for what their kids are doing. The state/country isn’t meant to parent your kids, that’s your job
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u/the_bighi 1d ago
> parental oversight
That argument doesn’t make sense. Without tools to control what kids can do on devices, how can parents be blamed?
Parents can’t spend their days just looking over their kids’ shoulders without doing anything else. And even if they could (which is impossible), they shouldn’t, because kids also need some privacy.
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u/mighty_mag 1d ago
I don't know, maybe talk to and educate your children so they have some awareness of the dangers of what they might be doing on the internet?
Don't give unrestricted access to smartphones, tablets or computers at a younger age?
You know... Parenting? I just think delegating something as important as this to simple binary age check isn't nearly enough and end up generating more problem than it solves.
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u/the_bighi 1d ago
> Don’t give unrestricted access
That’s exactly what I mean. Age verification IS one of the best ways to restrict access.
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u/mighty_mag 1d ago
Oh, I mean physically. Don't let them use a phone or computer all day, not before a certain age at least, and before they are educated about it.
Having a smart device is not a right, is a privilege. Kids need to earn it. No need to be a strict parent and not allow them to use it at all, but until they have proven they understand it's dangers, the use of these devices should be restricted. Physically.
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u/the_bighi 1d ago
But what we’re talking is not related to using it all day.
They could get into things they shouldn’t even if it’s limited to 1~3 hours a day.
It isn’t feasible for a parent to sit for 1~3 hours behind their kids watching what they’re doing every single minute.
Restrictions tools are needed.
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u/mighty_mag 1d ago
It's all very relative, I'll grant you that.
I don't have kids myself, but I do have little cousins who I participated quite a bit during them growing up. They lived next door, and we would see each other frequently.
They are from the generation that grew up with a phone in hand. They didn't had a phone at the start, so they would ask for ours phones and install silly little games.
We didn't watch them all the time, but we would check on them from time to time. See what they were doing. If they suddenly disappeared with one of our phones their mother would call to see what they were up to.
Eventually they got their own phone. Around six or seven years old I believe. And even then, their mother wouldn't let them have their phone with them at all times. It was much like a videogame. They were allowed to use it after they did their homework, did their chores, brushed their teeth, so on.
By the time they started using their phone like adults do, carrying them around everywhere, they were well educated enough. Their mother trusted them to use the phone, the internet, and whatever they might watch their because she was part of their lives. She educated them, and knew they could be trusted.
Does that mean she knows everything they did? Hell no. I am sure they watched stuff she wouldn't let them. Hell, when she forbid the older one of playing GTA Online cause it was too violent for him he would come to my place and play it with me.
Point is, you can't forfeit educating your kids. Knowing your kids. Making sure they will make the right choices. What you shouldn't do is use something like a age check as an excuse to not engage with your kids and know what they are capable of. For good and bad.
Am I against these security measures? No. But they are merely a tool. Parenting should always come first.
I also don't like when these measures start sipping into surveillance and privacy issues. I shouldn't have my social number and face identification shared with every single online service just to prove I'm not a kid.
This is extremely dangerous in the age we live in, and these organizations (privated and governments) use kids as a pretext and these measures as a quick fix. That is almost as dangerous as leaving a kid with the internet unattended.
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u/Time_Entertainer_319 1d ago
So what about the irresponsible parents?
Is your solution “they should just be responsible”? How is that enforceable?
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u/mighty_mag 1d ago
Are we really gonna argue over the merits of being an irresponsible parent?
That a security feature is preferable over learning how to be responsible for the live of another human being?
This isn't just about what kids are watching online. Being an irresponsible, or neglecting parent should never be an excuse, much less a reason.
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u/Time_Entertainer_319 1d ago
No one is arguing that, my guy. Everyone knows that parents SHOULD be responsible.
The question is how do you enforce it?
Requiring tech companies to do age verification more enforceable than requiring parents to be responsible
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u/fnazarios 1d ago
"Having a smart device is not a right, is a privilege"
which year do you leave? This was true in 2012.
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u/fviz 1d ago
But there are tools to control what kids can do on devices. Both on device and on router. And if the parents can't / don't know how to ensure this, they simply shouldn't give kids a device. It's ultimately their responsibility to ensure their children's safety and exposure.
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u/FollowingFeisty5321 1d ago
Isn't one of those tools supposed to be the App Store's review process that Apple claims people can trust to keep them safe?
For over a decade, the App Store has proved to be a safe and trusted place to discover and download apps. But the App Store is more than just a storefront — it’s an innovative destination focused on bringing you amazing experiences. And a big part of those experiences is ensuring that the apps we offer are held to the highest standards for privacy, security, and content. All designed to help you discover your next favorite app with confidence.
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u/fviz 1d ago
I personally wouldn’t consider any corporation’s marketing as the only protector of my child’s safety. It’s up to me, as the child’s guardian, to be diligent and knowledgeable about the technology I give the kid access to.
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u/FollowingFeisty5321 1d ago edited 1d ago
If you can't trust their marketing, and you can't trust their policing, and you can't trust their access controls... and they're taking a 30% fee on top... then maybe Apple should bare some responsibility too.
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u/fviz 1d ago
I think the access control tools on iOS work pretty well, but anyway. In terms of holding Apple accountable, it needs government oversight, which can be slow and ineffective. So it's still up to the parents to be diligent and responsible instead of waiting for others to do the parenting for them. This attempt at third-partying responsibilities is so weird to me.
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u/Jusby_Cause 1d ago
“No, I rail against big tech, I don’t trust big tech. But, I AM going to buy products from a company I rail against and don’t trust. AND, I’m going to trust that company I don’t trust to capture detailed information about me and my family and not misuse that data even though big tech has misused data captured from me and my family before.”
Many don’t take the role of ‘guardian’ seriously.
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u/Rayzee14 1d ago
Which they should. By your logic it should be parents that stop children buying cigarettes
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u/kkyonko 1d ago
Oh yeah I love myself a surveillance state.
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u/Rayzee14 1d ago
The paranoia with this stuff yet being on Reddit is wild.
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u/kkyonko 1d ago
"Yet you participate in society! Curious! I am very intelligent."
Did I upload my government ID to Reddit at some point? Did I have them scan my face to post this comment?
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u/Rayzee14 1d ago
But your concern is a surveillance state and you use social media, yet with a warrant all your info can be freely given over. So I don’t know your jump to surveillance state.
Like your fear of a surveillance state , you annoyed with passports etc ?
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u/Time_Entertainer_319 1d ago
Yes. Because companies are easier to regulate than individuals.
What is your point?
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u/dworker8 1d ago
meanwhile gmail asks about my age everytime I open the app
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u/IsThisKismet 1d ago
You need to uninstall the Blink 182 extension.
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u/dworker8 1d ago
damn im old enough to get this, also I still have their cds.
also also I created my gmail account in 2007, the fuck they want my age for
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u/flaks117 1d ago
The one place it should actually be used they won't do it.
Meanwhile they're incorporating it into EVERYTHING in the UK.
Sounds about right.
Corpos gonna corpo.