Real-name authentication cannot stop minors from recharging online games, and it is difficult for parents to refund
The Paper, News Reporter Chen Yue, Senior Reporter Zou Juan
In just three days, Huang Lin's 12-year-old son recharged about 35,000 yuan on mobile games.
Transaction records show that the number of recharges is as high as 100 times. "At the beginning, it was one (money) and one (money) recharge, and later there were more than 600 yuan for large amounts."
Huang Lin didn’t understand that her son’s mobile phone was used for online lessons, and she didn’t even insert her phone card. She remembered that she did not set up password-free payment and her son did not know the payment password, but the money was indeed spent. Yes, Yu'e Bao is also deducted."
"Sausage Party" recharge interface
She recalled that on the evening of February 27, when she found out that her Alipay account balance was wrong, she discovered that her son had secretly recharged the money while playing games. They were playing games on Xindong.com's "Sausage Party" and Tencent Games' "Honor of Kings" and "Peace Elite". About 35,000 yuan was spent on it.
The next day, she complained to the two platforms and requested a refund of the recharged amount.
After verification, the ID card used by Huang Lin's son to register the account was 1968, and the bound mobile phone number was also from a stranger.
As for the refund issue, Xindong.com stated that the game deducting party is Apple and should appeal to Apple; however, Apple’s official customer service replied that the background review failed and no specific reasons were given.
For Tencent, Huang Lin submitted the game account number, scanned copy of the account book and other materials, which are still under review.
"At least for real-name authentication, the ID card and phone number must belong to one person, or face recognition. This is too big a loophole." Huang Lin believes that online games have many loopholes in the protection of minors. Minors who have a vague concept of money are easily caught up in it.
In recent years, minors have recharged games without their parents’ knowledge, and the problem of parents’ difficulty in applying for refunds has frequently aroused social concern.
"Real-name" registered game accounts only need to provide ID numbers, consumption limits are not limited, refunds are difficult to prove, and there is no uniform standard for refunds on various game companies and platforms... The paper found in an interview to prevent minors from indulging Although the game has a clear text system, it has not been implemented.
Real-name authentication is not "real"
Pretending to be an adult, being called a "boss" by people in the QQ group, and entrusting others to sell equipment, the 11-year-old Wu Yangshuo not only deceived game netizens, but also deceived real-name authentication.
He was in elementary school in Australia, and during the summer vacation, he quietly used his mother's Alipay account for business to brush 160,000 yuan, and his real-name ID number registered on game platforms such as 4399 came from Ningxia, which he bought online.
Wu Yangshuo has recharged "Pikatang" many times, and the game description is suitable for users over 18 years of age.
In November 2019, the National Press and Publication Administration issued the "Notice on Preventing Minors from Indulging in Online Games" (hereinafter referred to as the "Notice"), requiring the implementation of a real-name registration system for online game user accounts.
Although all game platforms follow the regulations and require users to fill in their ID number and name on the first login interface, the authentication is successful after verification by the public security interface, but it is not known who the real user is.
Hong Fang in Shandong encountered a similar problem. Her son used her ID to register for "Juvenile Three Kingdoms".
"He asked for my ID number. I don't know what he is doing, and I didn't think about (game)." For a moment, Hong Fang reported the ID number to his son, but the child was still there early in the morning. Secretly played the game, recharged more than 1,300 yuan.
Only an ID card is needed. It does not matter who owns it. Such real-name authentication violates the original intention of the "Notice".
Tencent's restricted authentication steps for recharging games for minors
In June 2020, Tencent Games announced that for adult accounts suspected of being operated by minors, facial recognition verification will be required when logging in to the game and recharging and paying, and comparing it with the data on the authoritative public security platform.
If the user fails or refuses, the game account will be included in the corresponding anti-addiction system.
However, this will not prevent minors from operating in the name of adults.
Log in to the game via WeChat account, you can omit the real name
In addition to using other people’s ID cards, third-party accounts provide a more convenient way of authentication.
In the reporter downloading game experience, many games can directly choose WeChat or QQ to log in, and then a pop-up window prompts "your real-name information already exists in the account real-name database of Tencent platform".
This means that if children play on their parents’ mobile phones, they can log in to the game directly with their parents’ WeChat account, bypassing the steps of real-name authentication, and the parents only receive the "Notification of successful game character registration" in WeChat, and the child can delete it by swiping left.
Huawei, OPPO, Vivo and other mobile phones can also directly choose to log in with the corresponding mobile phone account to avoid real-name registration.
Frequent top-ups are not restricted
Shi Lei from Hebei told reporters that children played online games during the online class of the epidemic and spent 120,000 yuan on games such as "Battle of the Ball", "After Tomorrow", and "Peace Elite".
The recharge record showed that he recharged three times a minute at the fastest, 600 yuan each time; the most spent day spent 5,000 yuan.
Hong Fang stated that his son recharged the game several times on February 5 and 6, sometimes with an interval of less than one minute, ranging from fifty to sixty yuan to three hundred yuan.
The "Notice" requires that online game companies should restrict minors from using paid services that are inconsistent with their civil capacity. Users under 8 years of age are not allowed to pay for games; users over 8 years of age but under 16 years of age, the single recharge amount shall not exceed 50 yuan, the cumulative monthly recharge amount shall not exceed 200 yuan; for users over 16 but under 18, the single recharge amount shall not exceed 100 yuan, and the cumulative monthly recharge amount shall not exceed 400 yuan.
However, after the first barrier of real-name authentication disappears, there is no limit to consumption, and there is no restriction on the recharge of adult users.
On the 4399 game platform, a single recharge can be up to 50,000 yuan.
A reporter from The Paper (www.thepaper.cn) logged onto the game platform and found that the 4399 mini game recharge center can recharge up to 50,000 yuan in a single recharge, and the maximum rechargeable amount of "Sausage Party" from Xindong.com is 648 yuan.
Online game recharge is mainly used to purchase skins and equipment, and the amount varies. Some players say that a single piece of equipment can reach more than 1,000 yuan; and the card draw activity in the game attracts users with low-probability limited edition equipment. It does not cost money, but some players will continue to recharge and try their luck.
Many parents report that their children delete transaction reminders and text messages after completing the recharge. When the parents respond, they often have already spent many times.
How to prove the operation of minors? Difficulty in obtaining evidence
Many game companies stipulate that once consumers purchase or redeem game virtual currency, virtual items or value-added services, they cannot be refunded, unless otherwise mandatory by law.
On May 19, 2020, the Supreme People’s Court issued the "Guiding Opinions on Several Issues Concerning the Proper Trial of Civil Cases Involving the New Coronary Pneumonia Epidemic (2)", stipulating that persons with limited civil capacity can participate in online paid games without the consent of their guardians Or, if the online live broadcast platform "reward" or other methods spend money that is not suitable for its age and intelligence, and the guardian requests the network service provider to return the money, the people's court shall support it.
Therefore, game consumption by minors has become a legitimate reason for refunds for online games.
However, both real-name authentication and payment accounts are adults. How do game companies and platforms judge that the recharge behavior is completed by minors?
Previously, there were media reports that Apple’s refund rules were maliciously used. Some people applied for refunds under the guise of recharging minors, and even profited from them. Tencent customer service received more than 20 malicious purchases in the name of minors every day. Appeals, so game companies and platforms are also extra cautious in handling similar incidents.
In fact, when parents apply for a minor recharge and refund, they need to provide ID cards, transaction bills, proof of parent-child relationship, and other supporting materials that prove the minor's game consumption behavior.
A parent told reporters that when the child recharged, he was using another mobile phone to make a call, and the person was in the company, so he provided the call record and company certificate.
The frequency of recharge and the amount of consumption is also one of the proofs.
After Wu Yangshuo "crazyly" swiped 160,000 yuan, his uncle said that most of the refunds have been negotiated with the game company. "The game company is not too embarrassed. It just provided materials and recharged more than 100,000 yuan in half a month. At first glance, it’s not something mature people do."
But more parents said it was difficult to provide proof and the refund was refused.
Hong filed a game refund appeal to the Huawei platform, and the other party replied that after consulting with the game company, her application was rejected, one is because the real-name authentication ID is her, and the other is that two purchases occurred in the early hours of the morning, which did not meet the requirements. The routine of a 10-year-old child's schedule.
Hong Fang believes that the recharge behavior occurs during the Chinese New Year, and the family members sleep late and get up late. It is understandable for children to recharge in the early morning. As for identity verification, "I cannot play "Juvenile Three Kingdoms". A game played by children; besides, it is impossible for a normal person to be so irrational, one after another, recharging more than 1,000 yuan in two days." But she could not provide substantive evidence.
According to the official WeChat news of the Shanghai Consumer Protection Commission on March 11, in 2020, the Shanghai Consumer Protection Commission will accept more than 580 complaints about recharge and refund of online games from minors, which involve minors in Shanghai Giant Network Technology Co., Ltd. There are more than 60 recharges in the game "Battle of the Ball". Parents asked for a refund, but most of them were refused.
Insufficient evidence has become the main reason for online game companies to refuse refunds.
There is no uniform standard for refund rules
Even if the parent can prove that the child recharged without his knowledge, how much can the refund be refunded, how long is the time limit for the game company to accept the refund, and what if the child secretly recharges again?
Refunds for Xindong online games are accepted within 60 days of recharge.
Netizens on the "Black Cat Complaint" platform reported that Xindong.com can only apply for refunds of recharged orders within 60 days before the account’s first feedback date. Tencent accepts the refund within 180 days, and recharges via Apple’s mobile phone must first contact Apple’s customer service for processing. The appeal time is within 90 days from the recharge.
The rules for the refund of underage consumption on various game platforms are not disclosed, and the relevant conditions are only notified when users complain.
As for the amount of refund, from partial refund to full refund, the specific amount depends on the negotiation between the parents and the game company.
Uncle Wu Yangshuo said that Wu’s game recharge involves multiple platforms. After more than a month of negotiation, some game platforms have agreed to refund, and the consumption of more than 100,000 yuan has been refunded 90,000 yuan, and the rest of the platforms are still being processed.
In addition, the top-up fee involves the sharing of the game company and the payment channel, so the amount of refund depends on the audit results of the two parties.
On the "Black Cat Complaint" platform, some netizens reported that Tencent Games refunded the top-up value for underage adults in the name of "Care Fund" and only refunded part.
Tencent has explained to The Paper (www.thepaper.cn) that in most cases, parents cannot show specific evidence to prove that the consumption is a minor operation (such as operating video). Taking into account the difficulty of parents to provide evidence, Tencent has passed data verification, Comprehensive evaluation is conducted through communication verification and other methods. If it is determined that the credibility of underage consumption is high, it will be treated with care.
Each family can only apply for the "Care Fund" once, that is, if there is no evidence of minor recharge, the second recharge will not be refundable.
After discovering that the child’s game recharge cost 120,000 yuan, Shi Lei confiscated his son’s mobile phone and asked him if he was afraid. “He said he was afraid at first, but later attracted by this game, he put the word'fear' behind his head. Now, the game is number one, the others are not considered."
Soon, because of the need for online lessons, he gave his son a mobile phone without a card, and found that the child recharged the game again, "playing secretly again, recharged dozens of dollars through WeChat change, and said that he would charge it for his classmates." He said, "This child is so addicted to the Internet, he will die without a mobile phone. It seems that he feels very empty without a mobile phone."
(The characters in the text are all pseudonyms)