Letting kids play games early and giving them easy access to smart devices like smartphones and iPads is becoming common in modern society. On the bright side, early exposure to technology helps kids get comfortable with useful apps and tools. But it also brings plenty of problems, especially when it comes to controlling spending, which is a hot topic lately among young gamers. A recent viral story involves a 12-year-old boy that perfectly illustrates this issue.
The main character here is Xiaoxiang, a 12-year-old boy from Gongyi City, Henan Province. One day, while out eating with his grandpa, Xiaoxiang cleverly caught a glimpse of his grandpa’s password and memorized it. Unlike many kids who might forget such details, Xiaoxiang used his memory to do something unforgettable, instead of just playing games, he went on a wild online shopping spree.
Xiaoxiang spent his grandpa’s pension, which totaled about 230,000 yuan (nearly 850 million VND), converting it into a mountain of goods. He bought 61 items, including pricey tech like laptops, an Apple Watch, Huawei VR glasses, and gaming consoles. To his credit, he didn’t spend it all, he left 5 yuan (about 20,000 VND) in the account for his grandpa’s pocket money.
At first, Xiaoxiang’s family was surprised to see all these packages arriving at their home. They even thought some wealthy benefactor was spoiling them. But when grandpa discovered his account barely had enough money left for a cup of coffee, the truth came out and the young spender was exposed. Initial investigations showed Xiaoxiang made these purchases while watching a streamer’s live sales online.
Right now, Xiaoxiang’s family is contacting the brands to request refunds. But getting all the money back seems pretty unlikely.
