Consumer groups accuse Facebook of duping kids

Complaint says minors targeted to buy in-app games without consent

More than a dozen children’s advocacy groups on Thursday accused Facebook of knowingly deceiving children into racking up fees from games on its social network, the latest in a string of complaints against the company sent to federal regulators.

Activists called on the Federal Trade Commission to investigate whether Facebook violated consumer protection and child privacy laws by duping children into making in-app purchases in games like Angry Birds, Petvillseek refunds. The accusation stems from a 2012 lawsuit.

The complaint, filed by 17 groups including Common Sense Media, Campaign for a Commercial Free Childhood and the Center for Digital Democracy, says the purchases were often done without a parent’s permission. In some cases, they amounted to hundreds or thousands of dollars.

“Facebook’s exploitative practices targeted a population universally recognized as vulnerable — young people,” the groups said in the complaint.

In Washington’s greater focus on the power of Big Tech, Facebook has taken center stage. The social network’s role in statesponsored election interference, harmful content and privacy violations has set off a push for new privacy laws and multiple investigations of the company.

The children’s advocacy groups said they hoped their complaint would continue a drumbeat of pressure for Facebook to take more forceful steps to change its business practices.

A 2016 Facebook statement said it updated some policies.

“We have in place mechanisms to prevent fraud at the time of purchase, and we offer people the option to dispute purchases and seek refunds,” the statement said. “As part of our long history of working with parents and experts to offer tools for families navigating Facebook and the web, Facebook also has safeguards in place regarding minors’ purchases.”

The 135 pages of unsealed documents included internal corporate memos and emails in which Facebook employees encouraged game developers to create features that would get children to make credit card charges while playing games. In many cases, the children did not realize that their parents’ credit cards were attached to games or they were spending real money,