Girl uses parents’ phones to buy livestream gifts, drains their savings
An eight-year-old girl in Xinjiang, China, nearly emptied her parents’ savings accounts after spending tens of thousands of dollars on livestream gifts.
Source: Douyin
According to Chinese news outlet QQ News, the incident occurred more than two months ago.
The girl, who often played with her parents’ phones at home, was using a livestream platform when she entered a ‘room’ by chance.
Drawn to the host’s enthusiastic greetings and exaggerated performances, she began sending virtual gifts after seeing others do so.
As her parents had never shielded their screen from her when entering payment passwords for transfers, she had memorised the credentials.
The girl then quickly became the “Number One Big Sister” in multiple livestream rooms.
On 30 June, when her mother, Ni (name transliterated), urgently needed money to pay workers, she discovered the account balance had dropped to just 50 RMB (S$9).
She then immediately reported the incident to the police.
Police investigation led to the recovery of lost money
Authorities in Shaya County who investigated the case confirmed that within just two months, the girl had spent 71,803 RMB (S$12,800) on multiple livestream hosts.
Police immediately contacted the platform’s customer service, clarifying that the spending involved a minor acting without parental consent.
Officers even accompanied the parents to the bank to retrieve detailed transaction records, verifying both the amounts and timing of the expenditures.
Source: Douyin
Police also guided the parents in preparing a complete set of appeal materials, including the minor’s ID, proof of guardianship, and screenshots of all transactions.
After further communication with the livestream platform staff, where authorities explained relevant national laws protecting minors, the refund was approved.
Source: Douyin
The full amount was returned to the parents on 10 Aug.
Also read: Girl In China Spends S$85K Of Family’s Savings On Mobile Games, Netizens Blame Parents
Girl In China Spends S$85K Of Family’s Savings On Mobile Games, Netizens Blame Parents
Have news you must share? Get in touch with us via email at news@mustsharenews.com.
Featured image adapted from Douyin.
