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Business Insider
7 days ago
- Business Insider
Roblox accused of being a 'hunting ground' for child predators as legal firestorm against gaming giant intensifies
Roblox has been slammed as a "hunting ground for child-sex predators" in a new lawsuit against the online gaming giant that alleges it caused the sexual exploitation of a 9-year-old boy. The lawsuit, filed late last week in a Georgia state court by an anonymous DeKalb County mother and her young son, accuses Roblox of negligence as well as prioritizing growth over child safety. It follows a recent wave of similar lawsuits lodged against the $90 billion company that accuse the popular gaming platform of not doing enough to safeguard children from pedophiles. In a statement to Business Insider on Tuesday, a Roblox spokesperson said, "We are deeply troubled by any incident that endangers our users, and safety is a top priority." "We dedicate substantial resources, including advanced technology and 24/7 human moderation, to help detect and prevent inappropriate content and behavior, including attempts to direct users off platform, where safety standards and moderation may be less stringent than ours," the spokesperson said. The latest lawsuit alleges that these predators harassed the boy for months and ultimately "extorted" him to send sexually explicit images and videos to his friends at school. As a result, the boy has "suffered devastating and life-altering psychological trauma" and was eventually required to change schools, the lawsuit says. "Had Defendant implemented even the most basic system of age and identity verification, as well as effective parental controls, Plaintiff would never have engaged with this predator and never been harmed," the lawsuit says. In July, Roblox announced a new age verification system, which includes an age estimation tool based on a selfie-style video, for users who want to chat back-and-forth with so-called "trusted connections." "If the system estimates that a user is actually under 13, then we will automatically correct the user's age to under 13 and remove access to features that are not appropriate," Roblox says on its website. The Georgia mother's attorney, Matthew Dolman of the Florida-based firm Dolman Law Group, told Business Insider that he expects even more lawsuits to be filed in the near future and that his firm is currently investigating over 300 incidents on behalf of prospective claimants. "Roblox has materially misrepresented that its product is safe on multiple occasions knowing full well that law enforcement investigations resulting in arrests of sexual predators are occurring nationwide," Dolman said. Nearly 40% of Roblox's user base is under 13 Roblox, a top gaming platform among children and teens, hosts millions of user-generated games called "experiences" that range from racing to horror-themed. The Georgia lawsuit, which seeks a jury trial and an unspecified amount in monetary damages, says that Roblox hosts a "staggering number" of games centered on simulated sexual activity. The court documents also cited some games with titles like "Survive Diddy" and "Escape to Epstein Island" in reference to hip-hop mogul Sean "Diddy" Combs, who was recently convicted of two prostitution-related federal charges, and late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. When Roblox announced its latest earnings in July, the company reported an average of 111.8 million daily active users with a user base of nearly 40% under the age of 13. The latest lawsuit — which includes identical pages of allegations cited in separate, but similar lawsuits against Roblox — said the Georgia boy is just "one of countless children whose lives have been devastated" thanks to Roblox's "gross negligence and defectively designed app." The Roblox spokesperson told Business Insider: "While no system is perfect, Roblox has implemented rigorous safeguards, including restrictions on sharing personal information, links, and user-to-user image sharing, and prohibiting sexual conversations." "We also partner with law enforcement and leading child safety organizations worldwide to combat the sexual exploitation of children," the spokesperson said. Roblox recently deployed an open-source AI-powered system called Sentinel that it says was designed to help detect any early indicators of child endangerment interactions. The AI system, the company said, helped it submit about 1,200 reports of potential attempts at child exploitation to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children in the first half of the year. Roblox has faced at least five more lawsuits this year alleging the sexual exploitation of children. The lawsuits come after an October 2024 report by the prominent short-seller Hindenburg Research accused Roblox of being an "X-rated pedophile hellscape" and "exposing children to grooming, pornography, violent content and extremely abusive speech." The group-chatting platform Discord has been named as a co-defendant in those other lawsuits, all filed by the same Pennsylvania-based personal injury law firm, Anapol Weiss. A Discord spokesperson told Business Insider that the company does not comment on ongoing litigation, but said, "Any content or behavior that endangers younger users is not allowed on Discord." "Discord is deeply committed to safety and we require all users to be at least 13 to use our platform," the spokesperson said. "Using a range of technological and human moderation approaches, we work hard to proactively detect and remove content that violates our policies, report violations to NCMEC, and maintain robust systems to prevent sexual exploitation and grooming." One lawsuit filed last month in a California federal court alleges that a 14-year-old girl was groomed on Roblox by an adult predator masquerading as another teen. The complaint says the conversation between them moved over to Discord where the man repeatedly sent sexually explicit messages and photographs. The lawsuit says the man eventually lured the Alabama girl from her home and attempted to sexually assault her. Police intervened and the man was arrested, the lawsuit says.
Forbes
23-07-2025
- Forbes
Family Sues Roblox, Discord After Child Raped By Predatory User
Parents assume online games for kids such as Roblox are safe, but a new lawsuit claims the apps give ... More predators access to our kids. Most Parents are aware of concerns about social media and children, but often perceive games marketed to children like Roblox as safe. A lawsuit filed in California on July 17, 2025 alleges that Roblox misrepresents itself as safe while allowing a platform that makes children easy prey for pedophiles. The lawsuit was filed against Roblox and Discord on behalf of an 11-year-old girl, identified as Jane Doe R. M., of Miami-Dade County, Florida. According to the lawsuit, her mother allowed her to use the apps Roblox and Discord because she believed there were proper safeguards in place. While using the apps, the young girl was targeted by a child predator, who groomed her over time and eventually convinced her to meet in person. In April 2022, the predator drove to the child's grandfather's house in Florida, lured her into his vehicle, then took her to a nearby neighborhood where he violently raped her. The predator was later convicted of his crimes. Roblox, Discord And Explicit Content This isn't just one tragic story. In May the San Antonio Express reported on a Texas girl who was allegedly raped by a man who groomed her on Roblox and then traveled to her home. In 2022, Fox5 Atlanta reported on a similar case involving a 13-year-old Kansas girl. As lead attorney on the lawsuit Matthew Dolman comments, 'In allowing apps of these kinds to operate with virtually no restrictions, monitoring or age verification processes in place, we open 'worlds' designed for children to depraved individuals with unimaginable intentions and all the resources at their fingertips.' The lawsuit alleges that the apps actively misrepresent themselves as safe to parents. The court filing outlines a broader failure within Roblox's digital playground, alleging widespread graphic sexually explicit material as well as reports of avatars engaging in sexual activities in 'condo games,' virtual bathrooms and strip clubs. Additionally, the law group states its investigation uncovered hundreds of games with names referencing child sex trafficking themes inside the Roblox platform with names such as 'Diddy Party,' 'Survive Diddy,' 'JeffEpsteinSupporter' and 'Escape to Epstein Island.' FEATURED | Frase ByForbes™ Unscramble The Anagram To Reveal The Phrase Pinpoint By Linkedin Guess The Category Queens By Linkedin Crown Each Region Crossclimb By Linkedin Unlock A Trivia Ladder Meanwhile, the lawsuit also names Discord as playing a role in giving predators access to children. Discord is a communication app that links to many popular video games. For Roblox communities, Discord is a place where users can move their interactions and offers chat, voice, video, photo and text messaging. Roblox And Child Safety Roblox is an extremely popular gaming platform for children and teens, reporting 97.8 million daily active users. Common Sense Media, a non-profit organization that provides information and resources to help families make informed decisions about media and technology, reports that Roblox has more than 32 million daily players under age 13. But Roblox does not have strict age restrictions, so kids under 13 can play alongside teens and adults. According to a page on Roblox's website that explains parental controls to kids, 'When you create a Roblox account, the age you select helps us know what content to show you on Roblox.' The page goes on to explain to kids that users under 13 need parent permission to access certain chat features, while those under 9 need it to access experiences with 'moderate' content maturity. At age 13, the user may now add their phone number, and add friends and join group chats without parental permission. Further, parents are no longer able to manage privacy settings, screen time limits or how much money their child spends in the game. Regarding the lawsuit, a Roblox spokesperson declined to comment on pending litigation but emphasized the company's commitment to child safety. They emphasized Roblox's investment in advanced safety technology and 24/7 human moderation to detect and address inappropriate content, including efforts to share personal information or move conversations off-platform. The spokesperson also pointed to resources for parents provided on the Roblox website. Discord and Child Safety Discord requires users to be at least 13 years old, but it's age verification relies on users self-reporting their age by entering a birthdate. Only if a child is reported as being under 13 will Discord lock down their account. Common Sense Media's Kids Review page is full of reviews by teens warning parents about the racism and sexually explicit material they've encountered on Discord. 13-year-old Riley writes, 'please please please do not let your kid get discord. The amount of sexual assault, grooming and awful pictures/ videos of dead and dismembered body parts is disturbing.' A Discord Spokesperson declined to comment on ongoing litigation, but pointed to a deep commitment to user safety, by removing content, banning users, shutting down servers, and involving law enforcement when needed. In addition, the spokesperson pointed to safety tools for teens and guardians which can be found on their website. Parental Oversight Essential to Keep Kids Safe on Roblox Parents cannot rely on an app's safety claims alone. Roblox markets itself as a child-friendly platform, but this lawsuit highlights how much content may fly under the radar. Parents should not assume the moderation apps deploy is enough. Instead: Keep access to your children's devices, including your young teenagers. If your children argue, remind them that you pay for the phone, tablet, gaming system and wifi, and you have a right to monitor them. Grooming can be subtle. Kids may not recognize it as manipulation because it feels like friendship. Parents can access tools to keep their kids safe at the National Sexual Violence Resource Center's Keeping Kids Safe Online toolkit.
