bryans83

Q: Convert existing Apple ID to Child Apple ID

Hello Everyone,

 

Due to the number of Apple devices in our home, and being personalized to each other my children (both under 13) have their own Apple devices.  Because my wife and I did not want them to have access to our accounts,   I created separate Apple IDs with their names and my date of birth, but I manage (They don't know passwords, etc). so that they could use facetime and iMessage with their grandparents from their own devices.  As they have gotten older, they have also developed their own taste in music and apps and have used the different Apple IDs with iTunes cards they get for gifts sometimes and as rewards.


With the roll out of iOS and Family sharing I now have a situation where it would be nice to share some (not all) of the purchases spread across 4 accounts but when I add my children's accounts under family sharing it shows them as adults , Appleid.apple.com wont allow me to modify the birthdays for my kids to the correct dates. 

 

I know for a fact I am not the only one in this situation, so I'm asking the following

 

 

Is there a way to convert my kid's existing Apple IDs to the new Child Apple ID accounts so that I can approve iTunes purchases if I link them through family sharing?

iPhone 5, iOS 6.0.1

Posted on Sep 17, 2014 12:45 PM

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Q: Convert existing Apple ID to Child Apple ID

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  • by tammarch,

    tammarch tammarch Sep 18, 2014 6:19 PM in response to bryans83
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    Sep 18, 2014 6:19 PM in response to bryans83

    I am going through the same thing. It's extremely aggravating not being able to control my 13 and 10 year olds accounts because it lists them as adults. If I create a new child's account it will just cause mass confusion because of all the purchases I've already made through their accounts. Apple needs to fix this with the update.

  • by Grateful_Dude,

    Grateful_Dude Grateful_Dude Sep 18, 2014 8:22 PM in response to bryans83
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Sep 18, 2014 8:22 PM in response to bryans83

    This is frustrating.  I'm glad Apple finally is resolving lack of support of how to manage your kids iPads.  We've all had to get creative to manage this in the past.  I have a kid that has his own AppleID, but uses my iTunes account to purchase things.  There seems to be no way to migrate that to the new world of a family share plan.

     

    I converted my kids account for him to be 13.  I had to remove my iTunes account from his iPad.  I now try to re-add his AppleID to my family share account and I now get a message that I can't because he can only join a Family group twice a year and I now have to wait 364 days to add him.

     

    Apple needs to provide a path for all of us parents who have had to do things like this in the past onboard to the new model.

  • by the ginger monkey,

    the ginger monkey the ginger monkey Sep 19, 2014 3:10 AM in response to phemale12
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    Sep 19, 2014 3:10 AM in response to phemale12

    Yep - this seems like the best workaround so far. I've been on livechat with Apple for ages, and they say it can't be done (properly), but could be a future feature request. In the meantime, setting my kids up (9 and 11) as 13 year olds seems to be the best solution. At least that way we can get sharing to work AND I can pre-authorise any purchase. Thanks for suggesting it.

  • by Csound1,

    Csound1 Csound1 Sep 19, 2014 3:16 AM in response to Grateful_Dude
    Level 9 (50,417 points)
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    Sep 19, 2014 3:16 AM in response to Grateful_Dude

    Grateful_Dude wrote:

     

    Apple needs to provide a path for all of us parents who have had to do things like this in the past onboard to the new model.

    A path for parents who lie about the ages of their children?

     

    I disagree.

  • by adamloveshismacbookair,

    adamloveshismacbookair adamloveshismacbookair Sep 19, 2014 8:57 AM in response to Csound1
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    Sep 19, 2014 8:57 AM in response to Csound1

    Hahaha yes! Just kidding, I see both sides of the problem but the work around is enough. I created an account for my daughter because at the time (ipad 2) you could either a) share your account or b) create an adult account with no credit card so they can only use gift cards. it wasn't a scenario they had code for until later. People getting upset that they can't revert their child's adult account to their real age do not understand the system constraints. Just make your kids 13! Done and done.

  • by bydandie,

    bydandie bydandie Sep 19, 2014 9:42 AM in response to Csound1
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    Sep 19, 2014 9:42 AM in response to Csound1

    Much better that they try to be responsible within the limits set than simply give them a device without control.  Funny that you can change your birthday in the first place, but given that you do is delink the credit card if you make them younger than 13 I don't really see the issue.  I'm as concerned that you can't control purchases from a child older than 13 before they have consent.

  • by reidonly,

    reidonly reidonly Sep 19, 2014 4:16 PM in response to Csound1
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    Sep 19, 2014 4:16 PM in response to Csound1

    Your opinion is very special.

     

    Parents did not have to lie about their childrens' ages.  If you set up an Apple ID using an iOS device for Messages (nee iMessage), the Apple ID could be created without specifying an age.

     

    Now, in order to add such an Apple ID to a Family Sharing account, the age must be specified.  There is no readily apparent way to do this without now lying about the child's age.

     

    So, yes, this is an appropriate area for Apple to focus its energies.

  • by Spudge25,

    Spudge25 Spudge25 Sep 19, 2014 5:07 PM in response to bryans83
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    Sep 19, 2014 5:07 PM in response to bryans83

    Back when Apple used to charge for email accounts, before icloud, I set up a family account which was a discount price for family addresses so my son had an Apple ID since a very young age (6-7) and I could scan all his sent/received emails before they were sent on to him/the recipient. So apple used to have child accounts. Now, they seem to have forgotten about them, ditched all under 13s and blocked the change DoB feature. Massive let down from apple that I would like to see resolved soon.

  • by Csound1,

    Csound1 Csound1 Sep 20, 2014 12:00 AM in response to reidonly
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    Sep 20, 2014 12:00 AM in response to reidonly

    reidonly wrote:

     

    Your opinion is very special.

     

    Parents did not have to lie about their childrens' ages. 

    Correct, they did not have to lie, but as evidenced by this thread many did, even told each other how to.

     

    I detest liars, especially when they are doing it about their own children.

     

    Did you make up a false age for your child?

  • by bydandie,

    bydandie bydandie Sep 20, 2014 1:07 AM in response to Csound1
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    Sep 20, 2014 1:07 AM in response to Csound1

    With the advent of iMessage, you had to associate a date of birth. The ratings ecosystem doesn't allow you to install apps (such as the Google search app or iplayer) that allow you to set parental controls within them because of the default age rating.  We are also reliant on a four digit pin to set restrictions, which  is wholly inappropriate in this day and age.  We need to create good net citizens who understand how to communicate safely, but your argument is to wait until Apple provided this functionality and in the meantime stop children having safe access or provide them with access to a single user device using the adults account.

     

    My kids talk using iMessage to their close family, not friends as they are not allowed at their age, ask permission to call them using FaceTime and now have the freedom to ask to buy goods.  We need to evolve the ecosystem further to allow family sharing into a family hub, whereby restrictions can be applied on an age basis rather than relying on a pin, and in a manner that allows parents to override with information allowing them to make a an informed choice.. 

     

    If your only issue is parents who lied about their kids age to give them an appleid to make them safe then, with all due respect to your right an opinion, you're focussing your efforts in the wrong area.

  • by Csound1,

    Csound1 Csound1 Sep 20, 2014 1:15 AM in response to bydandie
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    Sep 20, 2014 1:15 AM in response to bydandie

    bydandie wrote:

     

    We need to evolve the ecosystem further to allow family sharing into a family hub, whereby restrictions can be applied on an age basis rather than relying on a pin,

    An age based system won't work if it is based on false information.

     

    The problem here is the age falsification, those who do not lie about their children's ages are penalised because of those who do.

  • by ssschmidt,

    ssschmidt ssschmidt Sep 20, 2014 1:17 AM in response to bydandie
    Level 5 (4,793 points)
    Sep 20, 2014 1:17 AM in response to bydandie

    You should have the ability to turn on Ask to Buy for any account that is not an Adult.

  • by Csound1,

    Csound1 Csound1 Sep 20, 2014 1:29 AM in response to ssschmidt
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    Sep 20, 2014 1:29 AM in response to ssschmidt

    ssschmidt wrote:

     

    You should have the ability to turn on Ask to Buy for any account that is not an Adult.

    I agree, but how do you verify the age?, clearly it is not sufficient to trust the parents. How do you suggest we do this?

  • by bydandie,

    bydandie bydandie Sep 20, 2014 1:30 AM in response to Csound1
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    Sep 20, 2014 1:30 AM in response to Csound1

    You're missing the point, the ability to set the correct age was removed for a number of years.  All we need now is the ability to set the correct age and there is no problem surely?

  • by Csound1,

    Csound1 Csound1 Sep 20, 2014 1:33 AM in response to bydandie
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    Sep 20, 2014 1:33 AM in response to bydandie

    The problem is that some lied about their children's ages when they signed them up, the rest of this is a result of the lie.

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