Apple faces legal challenge in Brazil over age checks for gambling apps

Three Brazilian child-rights organisations have taken Apple to court, arguing that minors can access casino-style apps through the App Store without effective age verification. The lawsuit seeks stronger controls, continued monitoring and significant financial penalties if the company fails to comply.

Apple is facing a public civil lawsuit in Brazil over allegations that its App Store does not provide sufficient safeguards to prevent children and teenagers from accessing casino-style applications. The action was filed in São Paulo on July 30 by the National Association of Centers for the Defense of Children and Adolescents (ANCED), Educafro Brasil and the Centro Santo Dias de Direitos Humanos.

The organisations are asking the court to require Apple to introduce an effective age-verification mechanism for casino applications distributed through the Brazilian App Store. They also want the company to prevent new casino apps from being listed without equivalent controls, continuously monitor existing titles and provide regular reports on compliance. Brazilian reports indicate that the plaintiffs are also seeking R$300 million in collective moral damages.

If the court grants the requested measures, Apple would have ten days to implement them. The plaintiffs have proposed a daily fine of R$500,000 for non-compliance. They have also requested the suspension of casino applications that cannot demonstrate adequate age-verification safeguards. The requests remain allegations and demands made by the plaintiffs and have not yet been established as violations by a final court ruling.

One of the applications specifically cited in the case is Casino Roulette: Roulettist. The game offers casino-style products including poker, baccarat, roulette and slot machines and allows users to purchase virtual chips through Apple’s in-app payment system. According to the plaintiffs’ tests, the application was labelled for users aged 18 and over but could be accessed without requiring documentary proof of age, identity verification or facial recognition.

The dispute comes shortly after Brazil’s Digital Statute of Children and Adolescents, known as ECA Digital, entered into force on March 17, 2026. The legislation introduced broader responsibilities for technology platforms and requires stronger age-assurance measures where children or teenagers could gain access to products and services prohibited for minors. Government guidance specifically states that providers cannot rely solely on users declaring that they are over 18.

Brazil has also tightened rules specifically affecting real-money betting applications. Apple announced in May that apps offering fixed-odds betting in the country can be distributed through the App Store only if their developers hold a valid licence issued by the Secretariat of Prizes and Betting. Such applications receive an A18 age classification in Brazil. The present lawsuit, however, highlights a broader issue: whether an age label by itself is sufficient to prevent minors from accessing casino-related content and spending money within applications.

Apple has said it is adapting its systems to Brazilian legislation and that age-verification functionality is being tested, with broader availability expected through a software update. The company has also pointed to Family Sharing and its existing parental-control tools as mechanisms parents can use to restrict downloads and purchases by children.

The response is notable because Apple had previously told developers that, from February 24, users in Brazil, Australia and Singapore would be prevented from downloading apps rated 18+ unless they had been confirmed as adults through reasonable methods. The allegations in the Brazilian lawsuit therefore place the practical operation of those safeguards under scrutiny.

The case could have consequences beyond Apple and the individual casino apps cited by the plaintiffs. Brazil is increasingly shifting responsibility for protecting minors not only to gambling operators but also to digital intermediaries that distribute and facilitate access to restricted content. If the court backs the organisations’ arguments, app marketplaces may face stronger expectations to verify age at the distribution level rather than relying primarily on ratings, developers or parental controls.