From David Heinemeyer-Hansson on Twitter
The @AppleCard is such a f—ing sexist program. My wife and I filed joint tax returns, live in a community-property state, and have been married for a long time. Yet Apple’s black box algorithm thinks I deserve 20x the credit limit she does. No appeals work.
In this scathing tweetstorm, DHH shows how the Apple Card credit limits have sexist limitations put woman borrowers. Later on, he shows a screenshot that reveals his wife’s credit limit on the Apple Card, a paltry $57.24. For reference, my own Apple Card credit limit, as a twenty-five year old with a relatively short credit history, is $7,500. Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak corroborated DHH’s experience, sharing his wife’s experience with the Apple Card.
In the three days since DHH launched his shot across the bow, Mashable reports that New York state regulators are investigating Apple and its partner Goldman Sachs for possible sexist practices related to the Apple Card.
For some, this news comes as a revelation, but in reality, sexist borrowing practices plague the financial industry. Even credit scores (which are mostly worthless, by the way) have elements that algorithmically discriminate by race, gender, and other factors. In a 2017 episode of her Bad with Money podcast, Gaby Dunn focuses on how credit cards work and covers some of the troubling elements of the industry.
I wish that Apple wasn’t in the mess to begin with, but the fact that the shady parts of the credit industry will go on public display is a good thing. So many people don’t have the financial literacy to know about how credit and borrowing works, in addition to their pitfalls, so I hope that this mess provides an opportunity for the uninformed to educated about something that is impacting their lives, whether they realize it or not.
Michael Miller 