Google is updating the Play Store with a change that can easily go unnoticed. However, it will avoid many unpleasant surprises in users' bank accounts.
You've definitely heard a story about a child who spends thousands of euros on in-app purchases while playing on one of their parents' smartphones. Or on a tablet, depending on your point of view. Whether from Android or iOS, the result is the same: the associated bank account ends up in the red. There are of course several ways to secure the purchase process in the Play Store or App Store to avoid this, but we don't necessarily think to use them.
These cases are extreme and fortunately quite rare. However, some people do make an app purchase without meaning to. When you ask them how this happened, they usually tell you it's because they have fat fingers and accidentally pressed the confirmation button. Google has apparently heard this excuse too often, to the point of making a small change to prevent this kind of incident from happening again.
Google has figured out how to prevent accidental purchases on the Play Store
In Play Store version 46.5.19-31, the teams at 9to5Google noticed that the purchase button in an app has changed. Until now, you just had to tap it. Now, validating the transaction requires sliding a slider from left to right. Google clearly explains that this is “to prevent accidental purchases”. Indeed, it's hard to see how someone could do this unintentionally, unless they're very distracted.
This doesn't prevent you from adding an extra layer of protection like requiring your fingerprint before purchasing, but at least you should be safe even if you don't. According to initial feedback, all instances of app purchases via the Play Store display the "slider", whether on a smartphone or on Google TV for example. You may have to wait a few days, or even weeks, before seeing it appear on your side.
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