Parents whose children have accidentally run up huge bills playing games on their iPhones could be in line for compensation from Apple.
Campaigners are awaiting the result of a U.S. court case in which a group of disgruntled parents are suing the company after their children’s innocent game playing ended up costing a fortune.
They accuse Apple of enticing children to spend money on iTunes
If the parents are successful, it could open the door for legal actions worldwide.
Apple, which is worth more than £311billion, has repeatedly been criticised for allowing children to spend hundreds of pounds on games using their parents’ iPhones.
Apps such as Smurfs’ Village, based on the popular books and film, have repeatedly caught out parents. Although some apps are free to download, playing them can incur charges. As the child collects ‘game currency’, the bills can mount up.
The U.S. court papers state: ‘These games are highly addictive, designed deliberately to be so, and tend to compel children playing them to purchase large quantities of game currency, amounting to as much as $100 (£62) per purchase or more.’
Youngsters don’t need to supply credit card details, as the costs are usually charged to the parents’ iTunes accounts which are already linked to card details. It could take up to 24 hours for parents to find out about the huge bills.
Marc Gander of Consumer Action Group, which led the revolt against UK bank charges, said: ‘I think a U.S. court case will help a great deal in the UK.
‘I would have thought that an angry parent could bring a fairly simple and very cheap action in the county court to recover their money.’
Apple has already been forced to change security settings on its iPhones in a bid to stop children innocently racking up huge bills. But some parents do not realise they can block their children from using their credit card details.
In December, the Mail revealed how seven-year-old Jack Drager ran up a £1,300 bill on an iPad in four days after his mother Heidi, 32, downloaded the Tap Zoo app for him free of charge.
The Dragers, from Barnsley, didn’t realise that some of the animals on the game cost up to £79.99 each. Apple agreed to refund the bill.
Apple said it was easy for parents to activate security settings and stop children running up charges.
Five people have been charged with intentional injury to a Chinese teenager who was so desperate to buy an iPad and iPhone that he sold his kidney for just over £2,000.
The accused, from southern China, include a surgeon who removed a kidney from a 17-year-old boy in return for around 220,000 yuan - just over £20,000.
Prosecutors in Chenzhou city, Hunan province, said one of the defendants received the money to arrange the transplant. He paid the teenager, identified only as Wang, 22,000 yuan - just over £2,000 - and split the rest with the surgeon, the three other defendants and other medical staff.
The teenager, identified only by his surname Wang, comes from Anhui, one of China's poorest provinces, where inhabitants frequently leave to find work and a better life elsewhere.
He now suffers from renal deficiency, according to the government-run Xinhua News Agency.
Following the surgery in April last year, Wang bought an iPhone and iPad.
When his mother quizzed him on how he funded the sought-after goods, he admitted selling a kidney.
It is not known who received and paid for the kidney.
The organ industry in China is booming and trading organs is a widespread online practice in the country.
Official statistics show that more than a million people in China need a transplant every year, but less than ten per cent receive them, driving a lucrative black market trade.
Few Chinese agree to donate their organs after death, fuelling the rampant trade in illegal market activity.
Apple products are hugely popular in China, but are priced beyond the reach of many Chinese. IPhones start at 3,988 yuan (£400), and iPads begin at 2,988 yuan - just under £190.
Wang's renal deficiency is deteriorating, Xinhua quoted prosecutors as saying.
Only a fraction of the people who need organ transplants in China are able to get them, leading to 'transplant tourism' where patients travel overseas for such operations, and to a black market for human organs.
China banned the trading of human organs in 2007 and have introduced a voluntary donor scheme to combat the trade.
Several other suspects involved in the case are still being investigated.
The accused, from southern China, include a surgeon who removed a kidney from a 17-year-old boy in return for around 220,000 yuan - just over £20,000.
Prosecutors in Chenzhou city, Hunan province, said one of the defendants received the money to arrange the transplant. He paid the teenager, identified only as Wang, 22,000 yuan - just over £2,000 - and split the rest with the surgeon, the three other defendants and other medical staff.
The teenager, identified only by his surname Wang, comes from Anhui, one of China's poorest provinces, where inhabitants frequently leave to find work and a better life elsewhere.
He now suffers from renal deficiency, according to the government-run Xinhua News Agency.
Following the surgery in April last year, Wang bought an iPhone and iPad.
When his mother quizzed him on how he funded the sought-after goods, he admitted selling a kidney.
It is not known who received and paid for the kidney.
The organ industry in China is booming and trading organs is a widespread online practice in the country.
Official statistics show that more than a million people in China need a transplant every year, but less than ten per cent receive them, driving a lucrative black market trade.
Few Chinese agree to donate their organs after death, fuelling the rampant trade in illegal market activity.
Apple products are hugely popular in China, but are priced beyond the reach of many Chinese. IPhones start at 3,988 yuan (£400), and iPads begin at 2,988 yuan - just under £190.
Wang's renal deficiency is deteriorating, Xinhua quoted prosecutors as saying.
Only a fraction of the people who need organ transplants in China are able to get them, leading to 'transplant tourism' where patients travel overseas for such operations, and to a black market for human organs.
China banned the trading of human organs in 2007 and have introduced a voluntary donor scheme to combat the trade.
Several other suspects involved in the case are still being investigated.
StatCounter: Free traffic analysis tool
Thanks to StatCounter, the free tool which provides comprehensive reports on your site traffic. The data provided by StatCounter traffic analysis tool include detailed information on the AdSense activity in your web sites.
AdSense click activity report provided by StatCounter
StatCounter reports provide lot of details on the AdSense clicks on your pages. The details provided by StatCounter include:
IpAddress which clicked on Google AdSense Ads
Country
Is a returning visitor?
Number of clicks from the IpAddress
Time interval between clicks on AdSense Ads
All clicks made from this Ip Address
pages in which the click was made
Link to which the clicked person was sent by clicking on AdSense Ad
In which Ad unit the person clicked
In addition, you can search for all activity from any specific Ip Address.
How StatCounter can help you detect click bombing?
Click bombing is a fraud activity by certain people on other people's Google AdSense Ads. Click bombing is a serious crime and anyone can get in to legal issues for clicking on other people's Ads. Google deals very seriously with click bombing.
Fortunately, there are several ways to track down and identify the people involved in Click bombing.
If you own AdSense accounts and if you suspect any abnormal activity on your AdSense Ads, you can use tools like StatCounter to track the click activity. StatCounter is an excellent tool to monitor AdSense click activity.
Thanks to StatCounter, the free tool which provides comprehensive reports on your site traffic. The data provided by StatCounter traffic analysis tool include detailed information on the AdSense activity in your web sites.
AdSense click activity report provided by StatCounter
StatCounter reports provide lot of details on the AdSense clicks on your pages. The details provided by StatCounter include:
IpAddress which clicked on Google AdSense Ads
Country
Is a returning visitor?
Number of clicks from the IpAddress
Time interval between clicks on AdSense Ads
All clicks made from this Ip Address
pages in which the click was made
Link to which the clicked person was sent by clicking on AdSense Ad
In which Ad unit the person clicked
In addition, you can search for all activity from any specific Ip Address.
How StatCounter can help you detect click bombing?
Click bombing is a fraud activity by certain people on other people's Google AdSense Ads. Click bombing is a serious crime and anyone can get in to legal issues for clicking on other people's Ads. Google deals very seriously with click bombing.
Fortunately, there are several ways to track down and identify the people involved in Click bombing.
If you own AdSense accounts and if you suspect any abnormal activity on your AdSense Ads, you can use tools like StatCounter to track the click activity. StatCounter is an excellent tool to monitor AdSense click activity.
How to use StatCounter?
In order to use StatCounter to track AdSense clicks, you must register at StatCounter.com and use the script provided by them in your web pages. Once the StatCounter script is installed in your website, you can login to your StatCounter account and see the visitor statistics.
How to use StatCounter to find who clicked on your AdSense Ads?
To find the click activity on your AdSense Ads, login to your StatCounter.com account. As part of your creation process, you would have created one or more projects there. Click on the appropriate project name. Then it shows the traffic summary and details.
When you are in the traffic details screen, it shows few links and menu items on the leftbar. Click on the menu called. "Exit Link Activity". This shows all clicks from your pages which resulted in leaving your website. So, if someone clicked on AdSense and left your page, that will be recorded along with the link to which site they went by clicking on the Ad.
The Belfast shipyard where the Titanic was built was allowed to fall into ruin as the city blocked out the painful memories of that doomed voyage.
But now the derelict dock from which the vessel set out has been revitalised for the 100th anniversary of the tragedy.
Visitors from across the world have bought tickets to the Northern Ireland attraction, which recounts a tale that still touches people's hearts.
The six-storey attraction is designed to look like the bow of the Titanic and stands beside the slipway where the liner was floated in 1911.
The unique dockside centre, Titanic Belfast, is part of a £100million regeneration project of the yards.
Its opening was attended by dignitaries, politicians and a 105-year-old who watched the fateful journey begin more than a century ago.
Cyril Quigley, who saw the Titanic launch with his parents at four years old, said the new building at the old Harland and Wolff shipyard was 'our Sydney Opera House'.
'My father and mother took me to Workman and Clark shipyard which is on the opposite side (of Belfast Lough) to watch the launch,' said Mr Quigley.
'That was better than all the people in Harland and Wolff watching it because of the crowds.
'I just saw a mass of metal in the gantries that they built for it and all I saw was this big thing sliding out into the water. I was only four and half.'
Retired accountant Mr Quigley, who lives in east Belfast, added: 'It's wonderful, it really is.
'I often thought they would make another plastic ship here and have it as a restaurant or something but this is fantastic.
'It's like our Sydney Opera House.'
It is hoped the centre will attract more than 400,000 visitors in its first year with its nine fascinating galleries, each devoted to a different aspect of the tragedy. Around 100,000 people have already bought tickets.
At the opening ceremony, Stormont First Minister Peter Robinson said the centre was just one reason people should visit a peaceful Northern Ireland.
'While many people will come to see the visitor attraction I believe they will be captivated and fall in love with the people of Northern Ireland,' said the Democratic Unionist leader.
'This is a new era in this province and I believe that we want to bring people to Northern Ireland not just to see what a generation 100 years ago were able to achieve, but what this generation can achieve in this new era of peace and stability.
'We have so much to offer, this is just the beginning.'
Sinn Fein Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness said the building was testament to what political power-sharing in the region had achieved.
'This building is a fantastic achievement,' he said. 'It's here because of the peace process, it's here because people like Peter Robinson and myself and others have pushed forward decisively in leadership to make a bold statement, as bold a statement as this building makes, that we need to stand together - that united we are strong, divided we are very, very weak.'
Mindful of the tragic fact that more than 1,500 lives lost in the maritime disaster, the ceremony was understated, with Mr Robinson and Mr McGuinness cutting a blue ribbon to mark the opening.
Lord Mayor of Belfast Niall O'Donnghaile said the human tragedy had made a deep impact on Belfast. 'But certainly we take great pride in the ability that we have taken from that story and that tragedy to realise opportunities for us in the here and in the now,' he added.
'The Titanic belongs to Belfast but this spectacle - Titanic Belfast - belongs to the world.'
Tourism Minister Arlene Foster said it was a proud day for Belfast and Northern Ireland.
'The story of the Titanic is known around the world and it is this unique history which will leave a deep impression upon visitors to the wonderful new building,' she said.
'Located beside the slipway where the Titanic was built, Titanic Belfast has an authenticity which will bring the ship's legend to life.'
Pat Doherty, chairman of Titanic Belfast, said he had been working on the regeneration of the shipyards for a decade.
'I always envisioned a stunning building which would reflect Belfast's former industrial glories and act as a catalyst for not just the city's tourist trade, but its wider transformation,' he said.
'In Titanic Belfast we have such a building.'
A memorial garden has been planted at the slipway, with different-sized strips of grass and wood representing the proportion of lives lost and saved among the crew and first, second and third class passengers when the ship sank after striking an iceberg on its maiden voyage.
The opening of the centre is to be followed by a Titanic Festival which will run until April 22.
Highlights among the 120 events include Titanic Sounds, an open-air MTV concert on the slipway, one of the world's largest light shows to be projected on to Titanic Belfast and the opening of a memorial garden at Belfast City Hall.
But now the derelict dock from which the vessel set out has been revitalised for the 100th anniversary of the tragedy.
Visitors from across the world have bought tickets to the Northern Ireland attraction, which recounts a tale that still touches people's hearts.
The six-storey attraction is designed to look like the bow of the Titanic and stands beside the slipway where the liner was floated in 1911.
The unique dockside centre, Titanic Belfast, is part of a £100million regeneration project of the yards.
Its opening was attended by dignitaries, politicians and a 105-year-old who watched the fateful journey begin more than a century ago.
Cyril Quigley, who saw the Titanic launch with his parents at four years old, said the new building at the old Harland and Wolff shipyard was 'our Sydney Opera House'.
'My father and mother took me to Workman and Clark shipyard which is on the opposite side (of Belfast Lough) to watch the launch,' said Mr Quigley.
'That was better than all the people in Harland and Wolff watching it because of the crowds.
'I just saw a mass of metal in the gantries that they built for it and all I saw was this big thing sliding out into the water. I was only four and half.'
Retired accountant Mr Quigley, who lives in east Belfast, added: 'It's wonderful, it really is.
'I often thought they would make another plastic ship here and have it as a restaurant or something but this is fantastic.
'It's like our Sydney Opera House.'
It is hoped the centre will attract more than 400,000 visitors in its first year with its nine fascinating galleries, each devoted to a different aspect of the tragedy. Around 100,000 people have already bought tickets.
At the opening ceremony, Stormont First Minister Peter Robinson said the centre was just one reason people should visit a peaceful Northern Ireland.
'While many people will come to see the visitor attraction I believe they will be captivated and fall in love with the people of Northern Ireland,' said the Democratic Unionist leader.
'This is a new era in this province and I believe that we want to bring people to Northern Ireland not just to see what a generation 100 years ago were able to achieve, but what this generation can achieve in this new era of peace and stability.
'We have so much to offer, this is just the beginning.'
Sinn Fein Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness said the building was testament to what political power-sharing in the region had achieved.
'This building is a fantastic achievement,' he said. 'It's here because of the peace process, it's here because people like Peter Robinson and myself and others have pushed forward decisively in leadership to make a bold statement, as bold a statement as this building makes, that we need to stand together - that united we are strong, divided we are very, very weak.'
Mindful of the tragic fact that more than 1,500 lives lost in the maritime disaster, the ceremony was understated, with Mr Robinson and Mr McGuinness cutting a blue ribbon to mark the opening.
Lord Mayor of Belfast Niall O'Donnghaile said the human tragedy had made a deep impact on Belfast. 'But certainly we take great pride in the ability that we have taken from that story and that tragedy to realise opportunities for us in the here and in the now,' he added.
'The Titanic belongs to Belfast but this spectacle - Titanic Belfast - belongs to the world.'
Tourism Minister Arlene Foster said it was a proud day for Belfast and Northern Ireland.
'The story of the Titanic is known around the world and it is this unique history which will leave a deep impression upon visitors to the wonderful new building,' she said.
'Located beside the slipway where the Titanic was built, Titanic Belfast has an authenticity which will bring the ship's legend to life.'
Pat Doherty, chairman of Titanic Belfast, said he had been working on the regeneration of the shipyards for a decade.
'I always envisioned a stunning building which would reflect Belfast's former industrial glories and act as a catalyst for not just the city's tourist trade, but its wider transformation,' he said.
'In Titanic Belfast we have such a building.'
A memorial garden has been planted at the slipway, with different-sized strips of grass and wood representing the proportion of lives lost and saved among the crew and first, second and third class passengers when the ship sank after striking an iceberg on its maiden voyage.
The opening of the centre is to be followed by a Titanic Festival which will run until April 22.
Highlights among the 120 events include Titanic Sounds, an open-air MTV concert on the slipway, one of the world's largest light shows to be projected on to Titanic Belfast and the opening of a memorial garden at Belfast City Hall.
'My boobs are agony!' Girl, 17, says 34K breasts are ruining her life – but faces four-year wait to have them reduced
Puberty is a tough time for teenage girls. Whether developing too quickly or too slowly, their changing shape can be a source of much anguish.
Spare a thought then for Ellie Jaycock, who at just 17 years of age has size 34K breasts.
She has been diagnosed with a rare condition that causes breasts to develop at a rapid pace from the onset of puberty.
Rare: Ellie Jaycock, 17, suffers from juvenile macromastia, a condition that causes rapid breast growth
Now Ellie, a student from East Looe, Cornwall, is desperate to have surgery to reduce the size of her breasts, saying they are causing crippling back pain.
But doctors have refused to operate until she is 21 and has stopped growing.
Ellie, who is 5ft 4in and weighs nine and a half stone (one stone of which is her breasts), says that her breasts haven't changed for nine months – but doctors still refuse to operate.
She is a slim size 10 but has to wear size 18 tops to accommodate her bust, which causes her constant pain – and have contributed to a massive loss of confidence.
'My boobs are ruining my life,' she says in an interview with Closer magazine. 'Girls call me a slag and people scream, “Who do you think you are, Jordan” I don't know how I'll cope until I'm 21.'
At first, Ellie's breasts seemed to be developing normally and she bought her first bra, a size 34B, when she was 12 years old.
Bullied: Ellie was taunted by classmates, who called her Tittie Tania, and by strangers who called her slag
But from then on, Ellie's bust began to increase in size dramatically.
At 13, her breasts grew from a C-cup to a DD-cup during the summer holidays. She began to suffer sharp pains in her breasts as well as crippling shoulder and backache.
Ellie suffers chronic back and shoulder pain owing to her breasts, which weigh around a stone, but doctors refuse to operate until she is 21
Painful: Ellie suffers chronic back and shoulder pain owing to her breasts, which weigh around a stone, but doctors refuse to operate until she is 21
At 15, Ellie and her family pleaded with doctors to allow her to have her H-cup breasts reduced.
But because of the likelihood of her body changing further, Ellie was told she had to go on the NHS waiting list until she was 21.
Doctors agree
that performing surgery too soon could cause harm to her breasts, possibly damaging milk ducts and making breastfeeding difficult in the future.
The operation would cost 7,000 privately – a price Ellie, who is now studying hotel management at college, can not afford.
And while Ellie has left the school bullies behind, she is still attracting unwelcome attention.
She tells Closer that she recently had to leave a work placement in a restaurant after she found a cartoon of herself in the staff room that said “her husband will never need pillows.”'
Her troubles do not end there. Ellie says she finds it hard to meet boys, because she gets suspicious about their motives for approaching her.
She struggles to find underwear to fit – and has even gone to the lengths of requesting via Facebook that Bravissimo, a lingerie brand that caters for women with larger breasts, open a branch of their shop in the South West.
'I just feel it's unfair that no one will help me,' she says. 'At least girls with flat chests can use special bras to boost their busts – but I can't hide my boobs.'
Puberty is a tough time for teenage girls. Whether developing too quickly or too slowly, their changing shape can be a source of much anguish.
Spare a thought then for Ellie Jaycock, who at just 17 years of age has size 34K breasts.
She has been diagnosed with a rare condition that causes breasts to develop at a rapid pace from the onset of puberty.
Rare: Ellie Jaycock, 17, suffers from juvenile macromastia, a condition that causes rapid breast growth
Now Ellie, a student from East Looe, Cornwall, is desperate to have surgery to reduce the size of her breasts, saying they are causing crippling back pain.
But doctors have refused to operate until she is 21 and has stopped growing.
Ellie, who is 5ft 4in and weighs nine and a half stone (one stone of which is her breasts), says that her breasts haven't changed for nine months – but doctors still refuse to operate.
She is a slim size 10 but has to wear size 18 tops to accommodate her bust, which causes her constant pain – and have contributed to a massive loss of confidence.
'My boobs are ruining my life,' she says in an interview with Closer magazine. 'Girls call me a slag and people scream, “Who do you think you are, Jordan” I don't know how I'll cope until I'm 21.'
At first, Ellie's breasts seemed to be developing normally and she bought her first bra, a size 34B, when she was 12 years old.
Bullied: Ellie was taunted by classmates, who called her Tittie Tania, and by strangers who called her slag
But from then on, Ellie's bust began to increase in size dramatically.
At 13, her breasts grew from a C-cup to a DD-cup during the summer holidays. She began to suffer sharp pains in her breasts as well as crippling shoulder and backache.
Ellie suffers chronic back and shoulder pain owing to her breasts, which weigh around a stone, but doctors refuse to operate until she is 21
Painful: Ellie suffers chronic back and shoulder pain owing to her breasts, which weigh around a stone, but doctors refuse to operate until she is 21
At 15, Ellie and her family pleaded with doctors to allow her to have her H-cup breasts reduced.
But because of the likelihood of her body changing further, Ellie was told she had to go on the NHS waiting list until she was 21.
Doctors agree
that performing surgery too soon could cause harm to her breasts, possibly damaging milk ducts and making breastfeeding difficult in the future.
The operation would cost 7,000 privately – a price Ellie, who is now studying hotel management at college, can not afford.
And while Ellie has left the school bullies behind, she is still attracting unwelcome attention.
She tells Closer that she recently had to leave a work placement in a restaurant after she found a cartoon of herself in the staff room that said “her husband will never need pillows.”'
Her troubles do not end there. Ellie says she finds it hard to meet boys, because she gets suspicious about their motives for approaching her.
She struggles to find underwear to fit – and has even gone to the lengths of requesting via Facebook that Bravissimo, a lingerie brand that caters for women with larger breasts, open a branch of their shop in the South West.
'I just feel it's unfair that no one will help me,' she says. 'At least girls with flat chests can use special bras to boost their busts – but I can't hide my boobs.'