A 9-year-old boy reportedly ran up a $118,000 bill on his father's corporate credit card by launching YouTube ad campaigns for his gaming videos. The spending spree lasted three weeks, according to both The Register and Tom's Hardware, and was meant to be a single $20 promotion. The child's channels featured Roblox and Minecraft content, though the two outlets differ slightly on which game was the primary focus.
The father, who works for the company that owns the card, now faces a massive unexpected charge. The Register notes that the boy would need to earn about $13,000 a year to pay back the debt before turning 18—a detail Tom's Hardware does not mention. Both sources describe the father as devastated, and the incident highlights how easily ad platforms can accept large charges without proper safeguards.
While this story is more about billing mishaps than computing hardware, it underscores the importance of payment controls on cloud and advertising platforms. Neither source reports whether the company will forgive the charge or if the family is negotiating with YouTube, leaving the financial resolution unclear.