iOS 7.1 Includes Warning Message About 15-Minute In-App Purchase Window

Along with several visual tweaks, CarPlay support, and Touch ID enhancements, iOS 7.1 also brought some changes to the way in-app purchases work. When making an in-app purchase for the first time after updating, users are notified via a pop-up window that additional in-app purchases can be made for 15 minutes without reentering a password.

The message also points to an existing option in the Settings menu that allows users to require a password with every in-app purchase.

inapppurchasenotification
First uncovered by AppleInsider, the new message is likely the result of an agreement between Apple and the Federal Trade Commission, which required the company to implement measures to obtain express consent from consumers before billing them for an in-app purchase.

According to the consent decree that was initially signed in January, Apple had until March 31 to make the necessary changes, which may or may not be completed with the inclusion of the new message that requires users to acknowledge the possibility of additional in-app purchases.

While the pop-up is new, Apple has always had a 15-minute purchase window allowing additional in-app purchases to be made without reentering a password, a policy that landed the company in hot water in 2011 after parental complaints about children over-spending in apps sparked the FTC's interest.

Apple made some changes to in-app purchases following the complaints, requiring a separate password entry specifically for in-app purchases, but the company was still forced by the FTC to to provide full refunds to parents whose children purchased unauthorized in-app items.

In addition to implementing the required changes to the App Store, Apple will refund approximately $32 million to parents.

Related Forum: iOS 7

Popular Stories

iOS 26

iOS 26.2 Coming Soon With These 8 New Features on Your iPhone

Thursday December 11, 2025 8:49 am PST by
Apple seeded the second iOS 26.2 Release Candidate to developers earlier this week, meaning the update will be released to the general public very soon. Apple confirmed iOS 26.2 would be released in December, but it did not provide a specific date. We expect the update to be released by early next week. iOS 26.2 includes a handful of new features and changes on the iPhone, such as a new...
iOS 26

iOS 26.4 and iOS 27 Features Revealed in New Leak

Friday December 12, 2025 10:56 am PST by
Macworld's Filipe Espósito today revealed a handful of features that Apple is allegedly planning for iOS 26.4, iOS 27, and even iOS 28. The report said the features are referenced within the code for a leaked internal build of iOS 26 that is not meant to be seen by the public. However, it appears that Espósito and/or his sources managed to gain access to it, providing us with a sneak peek...
AirPods Pro Firmware Feature

Apple Releases New Firmware for AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods Pro 3

Thursday December 11, 2025 11:28 am PST by
Apple today released new firmware designed for the AirPods Pro 3 and the prior-generation AirPods Pro 2. The AirPods Pro 3 firmware is 8B30, up from 8B25, while the AirPods Pro 2 firmware is 8B28, up from 8B21. There's no word on what's include in the updated firmware, but the AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods Pro 3 are getting expanded support for Live Translation in the European Union in iOS...
iOS 26

Apple Releases iOS 26.2 With Alarms for Reminders, Lock Screen Changes, Enhanced Safety Alerts and More

Friday December 12, 2025 10:10 am PST by
Apple today released iOS 26.2, the second major update to the iOS 26 operating system that came out in September, iOS 26.2 comes a little over a month after iOS 26.1 launched. ‌iOS 26‌.2 is compatible with the ‌iPhone‌ 11 series and later, as well as the second-generation ‌iPhone‌ SE. The new software can be downloaded on eligible iPhones over-the-air by going to Settings >...
Google maps feaure

Google Maps Quietly Added This Long-Overdue Feature for Drivers

Wednesday December 10, 2025 2:52 am PST by
Google Maps on iOS quietly gained a new feature recently that automatically recognizes where you've parked your vehicle and saves the location for you. Announced on LinkedIn by Rio Akasaka, Google Maps' senior product manager, the new feature auto-detects your parked location even if you don't use the parking pin function, saves it for up to 48 hours, and then automatically removes it once...
AirTag 2 Mock Feature

Apple AirTag 2: Four New Features Found in iOS 26 Code

Thursday December 11, 2025 10:31 am PST by
The AirTag 2 will include a handful of new features that will improve tracking capabilities, according to a new report from Macworld. The site says that it was able to access an internal build of iOS 26, which includes references to multiple unreleased products. Here's what's supposedly coming: An improved pairing process, though no details were provided. AirTag pairing is already...
macOS Tahoe 26 Thumb

Apple Releases macOS Tahoe 26.2 With Edge Light

Friday December 12, 2025 10:08 am PST by
Apple today released macOS Tahoe 26.2, the second major update to the macOS Tahoe operating system that came out in September. macOS Tahoe 26.2 comes five weeks after Apple released macOS Tahoe 26.1. Mac users can download the macOS Tahoe update by using the Software Update section of System Settings. macOS Tahoe 26.2 includes Edge Light, a feature that illuminates your face with soft...
iOS 26

15 New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 26.2

Friday December 5, 2025 9:40 am PST by
Apple is about to release iOS 26.2, the second major point update for iPhones since iOS 26 was rolled out in September, and there are at least 15 notable changes and improvements worth checking out. We've rounded them up below. Apple is expected to roll out iOS 26.2 to compatible devices sometime between December 8 and December 16. When the update drops, you can check Apple's servers for the ...

Top Rated Comments

applesith Avatar
154 months ago
This is a win for lazy un-involved parents everywhere.
Score: 23 Votes (Like | Disagree)
kolax Avatar
154 months ago
Parents are still going complain because parents for others to do their jobs even if Apple improves the security for app purchase from minors. Lets make this simple stop letting your kids accessing your account and than the problem is easily solved.
I side with the parents on this. There was no warning of the 15 minute window previously, so after they enter their password allowing their child to download an app, how would they know it remains password free for 15 minutes?

I don't expect every parent to be technologically literate, and with Apple marketing themselves as family friendly, they should've tried harder to make the App Store family friendly ages ago.
Score: 22 Votes (Like | Disagree)
LagunaSol Avatar
154 months ago
how would they know it remains password free for 15 minutes?

They wouldn't. There's nothing "lazy" or "uninvolved" about it. It's a dangerous default setting that needed to be explained (or changed).
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
AngerDanger Avatar
154 months ago
It's fun to think of how negligent parents will read that warning…

Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
kdarling Avatar
154 months ago
One thing I can predict for certain:

All the self-centered childless posters (and my guess is a lot of them are kids themselves) yapping about how to parent, will change their tune not long after they grow up and have kids themselves.

They'll also be embarrassed looking back at what they said.

For it is a fact of life, that most everyone finds out that their elders were right after all :)
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
LagunaSol Avatar
154 months ago
Did it occur to you that maybe...I dunno...you could have...again, I dunno...talked to your kid and told him or her not to do anything but play the game?

Why should I have assumed he had an open 15 minute buying period without my consent??? Why would I talk to him about something I wasn't even aware he was able to do? :mad:

It's a stupid default setting that consumers were not made aware of. Apple really should change the default setting, but the new alert is better than what we had before.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)