Exclusive: Children as young as four offered 'highly addictive' casino-style games by Apple, Google and Facebook

Coin Mania: Farm Dozer is considered appropriate for children as young as four
Coin Mania: Farm Dozer is considered appropriate for children as young as four

Children as young as four are being offered free "highly addictive" casino-style games by Apple, Google and Facebook, an investigation by The Telegraph has found.

The companies offer hundreds of free-to-play casino games including roulette, poker which are rated as being appropriate for children aged 12 and above.

Many of them feature popular cartoon characters. Apple even rates some of its games as suitable for four-year-olds, including one billed as the most "addictive coin pusher game ever" which includes roulette and slot machine mini-games.

The Gambling Commission, which regulates the licensed sector, warns that the availability of the games on mobile phones and social networking websites risks "normalising" gambling for a generation of children.

Monopoly Slots!, licenced by Hasbro, is rated 12+
Monopoly Slots!, licenced by Hasbro, is rated 12+

The games also offer "in-app" purchases, meaning children who play them can run up huge bills on their parents' credit cards. One app enables players to buy up to £179 worth of virtual coins.

Tim Miller, executive director of the commission, said: "Free to play casino-style games of the type highlighted by the Telegraph’s investigation are evidence of the gamblification of computer games. They are highly accessible and attractive to children.

"Perhaps more worryingly, as today’s Telegraph investigation shows, some of these products are exposing children to gambling type activities- spinning a roulette wheel, playing a slot machine, games of chance- without any of the warnings or protections that we require licensed gambling operators to provide."

The free-to-play games are unregulated because they do not enable people to gamble with real money. Instead they offer a virtual gambling experience, complete with "big jackpots" and "Vegas thrills".

Zynga Poker, Texas Holdem is rated 12+ by Apple and Google
Zynga Poker, Texas Holdem is rated 12+ by Apple and Google

Apple offers 200 free-to-play casino games for iPhones and iPads, 117 of which are considered appropriate for children aged 12 and above.

Facebook offers its users more than 70 casino style-games without any age ratings. Users are supposed to be over 13, but there are concerns many children simply claim they are older so they can use the app.

Google offers 250 casino games, the vast majority of which are rated as suitable for those aged 12 and above.

Apple considers the games appropriate for children even though its own rating system warns that some of them include "intense simulated gambling", "mild sexual content" and "mild alcohol, tobacco or drug use references".

Games being offered to children as young as 12 include "Monopoly Slots", which has been licensed by the toy-maker Hasbro and offers "thrilling free slot games with huge coin payouts".

Sega Slots is considered appropriate for children aged 12 plus
Sega Slots is considered appropriate for children aged 12 plus

The game's description says: "Mr Monopoly wants you to join in the excitement of Vegas slot machines while you build and develop monopoly City and win huge fun jackpots".

While the game's description says it is intended for over 21s, Apple and Google's rating system says it is suitable for those aged 12 and above.

Apple's app store also rates a series of games called "Coin Mania" as appropriate for children as young as four. One of them, Farm Dozer, features a boy named Ethan who has to play coin-based games to help his grandfather build a house.

The main game is an arcade-style "penny fall", but the app also offers mini-games including roulette and slot machines. Players are also able to pay to buy more coins using "in-app purchases". Google's app store says it is appropriate for those age 12 and above.

The most popular casino game, Coin Dozer, is also considered appropriate for those aged 12 and above by Google and Apple.

As well as a coin-pusher game, it also offers players the chance to "spin the slots and win the jackpot". The description for the product, which has over 48,000 reviews, says: "Bring your childhood carnival home with you and have a party on your phone or tablet with the top free coin pusher game."

The top poker game, Zynga Poker, Texas Holdem, says in the small print that it is "intended for an adult audience" but is also rated by Apple and Google as a 12+ game.

Players are offered 60,000 "free chips" and can play against millions people online. Sega Slots is also considered appropriate for children aged 12 and over, and features the Sonic the Hedgehog cartoon character which featured in the hugely popular series of computer games. Players are urged to "help Sonic rescue his friends and earn huge payouts along the way in Sonic Slots".

The small print says it is"intended for an adult audience" and the game asks for the player's age after it is downloaded. However children can easily lie and say they are aged 18.

The game offers users the chance to buy gems for up to £99 on Apple iPhones and £199 on phones which use Google's Android operating system.

A spokesman for Facebook said: "The safety of young people on Facebook is our priority and we have clear policies in place for app developers, who are required to follow the appropriate laws in the countries they operate in. We also work closely with the Gambling Commission to ensure our platform fully complies with all applicable laws, regulations, and guidelines in the UK.”

Google said that gambling app on its platform are subject to "strict requirements". Apple did not respond to requests for comment.

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