Don’t let your kids on Roblox if you’re worried, says Roblox CEO

In response to growing worries about the safety of children using Roblox, the CEO of the company has said to parents: “My first message would be, if you’re not comfortable, don’t let your kids be on Roblox.”

Roblox is one of the most popular gaming platforms, especially among young children. Reportedly, of the over 80 million players per day, roughly 40% of them are below the age of 13.

As we wrote last month, a lawsuit was recently initiated against Roblox and messaging platform Discord, in which Roblox was referred to as a “real-life nightmare for children.”

Besides spending way too much time on the platform, children run the risk of getting exposed to inappropriate content, online predators, cyberbullying, and scams. Scammers often promise free Robux (the virtual currency used on the platform) or other benefits to trick children into sharing personal information or downloading malware.

The lawsuit claims that both Roblox and Discord are aware of how easily predators can target children through their platforms by grooming and manipulating children into sending explicit material but have failed to provide adequate safety measures to protect minors from such exploitation. 

Asked about the allegations, co-founder and CEO of Roblox, Dave Baszucki said the company is vigilant in protecting its users and pointed out that tens of millions of people enjoy an amazing experience on the platform.

“We watch for bullying, we watch for harassment, we filter all of those kinds of things, and I would say behind the scenes, the analysis goes on all the way to, if necessary, reaching out to law enforcement.”

But to parents who are still worried, he told the BBC these caretakers should trust their instincts and make their own decisions and don’t let their kids be on Roblox.

Which, if you have kids, will recognize as something  “easier said than done.”

How can you keep your children safe?

Since it’s not likely you’ll be able to guide your children 24/7 in their online journey, here are some tips you can use to keep them safe.

• Take control. Use Roblox’s Parental Controls to limit access to age-appropriate games and content and enable features like daily screen-time limits.
• Anonymize. When setting up your child’s Roblox account, avoid using real names, and use an appropriate date of birth to enable the relevant restrictions.
• Friend requests. Access the settings of your child’s account to limit or disable friend requests and online chat capabilities.
• Stay on the platform. Tell your child to refuse requests to take chats offline or to another platform. Predators will do this to avoid Roblox’s restrictions about sharing images.
• Education. Teach children about online safety, including not sharing personal information and avoiding suspicious links, and make sure they are comfortable sharing their online experiences with you.
• Play with them. What’s more fun than beating your parents in your favorite game? Spending some quality time with them makes it fun to keep an eye on them and the games they enjoy.
• Information. Stay on top of information about Roblox’s updates, features, and changes.
• Protect the device. Make sure they are playing on a device that is fully up-to-date and actively protected.

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