The firm eliminated a long-standing loophole that permitted anyone to benefit from educational benefits.
Being a student comes with a lot of benefits, including discounts from various firms all around the world. Apple has maintained an education edition of its online store with special offers and lower prices on select products for years. Students, teachers, and employees working at educational institutions in certain nations are eligible for these discounts, According to Apple. However, until now, the corporation did not require any kind of authentication in order to take advantage of the bargains in the United States. Despite not being technically eligible, some buyers would brag online about how they were acquiring cheaper Apple products. This is no longer the case, since the corporation now demands verification in the United States through UNiDAYS.
In the United States, Apple has closed a loophole that allowed consumers to take advantage of its education discount even if they weren't students or teachers. The US Apple Store now asks purchasers to authenticate their status via UNiDAYS in order to purchase MacBooks, iPads, and other gadgets from its education section, according to a Redditor. The tech giant's education discount typically saves customers 10% off the initial retail price of a product. It applies to current and newly admitted college or university students, as well as professors and faculty/staff at any grade level in a school.
According to Snapshots from the Wayback Machine, the change occurred within the last few days, as the UNiDAYS verification requirement is not visible even in the most recent record for January 17th. Previously, Apple did not require customers in the United States to prove their status, unlike its stores in other countries, such as the United Kingdom, which have long required UNiDAYS verification. It didn't even ask for an email address ending in.edu. If the corporation concludes that a customer is not actually eligible for the education discount, it simply checks them at random and charges the difference to their credit card.
Buyers will no longer be able to see the product listings on the Apple Education website. They must first go to the UNiDAYS Apple Partner Page, where they must sign in or register in order to be verified. They can buy whatever they want once they're in, as long as it's within the promotion's device limits. Each year, buyers are limited to one desktop, one Mac mini, one laptop, two iPads, and two accessories.
At the time of writing, anyone in US could still take advantage of student discounts at the education online store. Discounted iPads and Mac Models are included in these offers. This is on top of some limited-time deals, such as free AirPods with qualifying purchases around the start of the school year. However, it's safe to presume that Apple will address the issue in US as well.
