The latest news revealed that Google has agreed to make full refunds of about $19 million in total to consumers that were charged for in-app purchases their children made from the Google Play app store without their parents' consent, Huffington Post reports. Most of these purchases came from children playing video games such as Air Penguins and Ice Age Village on tablets and smartphones.

As always, the Internet has become both a boon and a curse. It makes for faster communication and productivity and yet it also accounts for costly mishaps, such as unauthorized purchases made by tech-savvy children.

This latest settlement is part of the case by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) about unauthorized in-app purchases made by children. In January, the FTC settled with Apple for $32.5 million. The FTC also filed a complaint against Amazon, although the company said that it would not settle.

In the case of Google, the FTC said that they had started receiving reports about children's unauthorized purchases since 2011. The charges ranged from $0.99 to $200. Based on the complaint made by the FTC, the in-app charges that Google Play introduced in 2011 were not protected by password. Therefore, children were able to buy virtual items by just clicking on the pop up boxes within an app as they played.

Late in 2012, Google installed a pop-up box that asked for a password before payment. However, there was still a 30-minute window wherein a password was not required. FTC Chairwoman Edith Ramirez said that while mobile technology is being embraced by consumers, their protection should still include not being charged for unauthorized purchases.

Aside from the monetary settlement, Google is now required to change its billing practices. They will have to get express and informed consent from consumers before they can be charged for in-app purchases.