Kentucky Attorney General, Russell Coleman, filed a complaint against ROBLOX, INC., alleging deceptive practices and systemic safety failures affecting children. The lawsuit describes how Roblox created an easy path for minors to create accounts without verifiable parental consent, communication features and in-game currency that predators exploit, and belated and ineffective safety changes that fail to protect children.
As Alexandra Walsh, an Anapol Weiss shareholder championing these cases nationally, explains, “The Kentucky Attorney General’s complaint elevates an urgent issue of children’s safety online. For years, Roblox has marketed itself as a safe place for kids, and all the while refusing to implement processes and protections that are actually capable of keeping kids safe. The state’s detailed filing lays bare what a powerful tool Roblox gives predators to identify, target, and groom innocent kids.”
Dangers of Roblox
Anapol Weiss has filed over 10 lawsuits against Roblox, detailing disturbing cases involving grooming, sexual exploitation, sexual assault, and, in some cases, kidnapping. Predators are given easy access to kids via the popular gaming platform, disguising themselves as children to prey upon our society’s most vulnerable. Roblox ’s current main demographic is children around nine years old, though children as young as four or five are known to use the platform.
Once these predators find a young victim, they establish a manipulative relationship by isolating the child before eventually coercing them into sending explicit photos or videos of themselves. Even when the child resists, these predators will often use extreme intimidation and threats to force children into acquiescing. In the worst cases, the sexual exploitation turns into in-person sexual abuse.
The lawsuit alleges that Roblox has failed to take sufficient steps to protect its young users from these manipulative grooming users, despite years of lawsuits and widespread media criticism. The Kentucky Attorney General’s filing represents an important step toward holding the company accountable and, more importantly, improving child safety.
Kentucky Filing Details Shocking Safety Gaps
Among the many examples provided by the Kentucky Attorney General, one that especially resonates is the lack of accessible safety features, particularly the difficulty navigating Roblox’s parental controls.
Roblox markets itself to nine-year-olds while fully aware that children as young as four and five are on the platform. Yet the company doesn't require parental permission to create an account. Parental controls can only be set up after a parent is added to the child's account, long after a child has already been exposed to potential dangers. For parents who don’t realize their child is playing Roblox, their ability to protect them was compromised from day one. These optional parental controls are hidden, accessed by an unlabeled gear icon, arguably designed to make it confusing for parents to find, let alone turn on.
The problems on Roblox run deeper. Until November 2024, adults could contact players of any age on Roblox. That’s nearly 20 years of unrestricted adult access to children. Roblox’s recent changes still fall short: kids under 13 can still send direct messages to anyone in the same game/experience and those messages are public.
This is a moderate attempt at best, as predators have been found replacing letters with symbols to type out explicit messages in games. Even if a child is not being targeted directly, they may still see explicit messages on their screen since they can be viewed by everyone.
Messaging, however, is only one of the dangers on the platform. As detailed in the complaint, there have been numerous instances of children being exposed to sexual content while playing Roblox. For example, children can play “condo games,” in which avatars can remove their clothing and engage in simulated sexual activity. In one disturbing example, a seven year old girl’s avatar was even raped by two male avatars while on a digital playground.
These examples highlight just how dangerous Roblox has become and their negligence makes it possible for these types of acts to still happen. Children come to Roblox to have fun, but instead, their innocence is shattered. Anapol Weiss attorneys Alexandra Walsh, Paige Boldt, and Kristen Varallo are fighting for accountability from Roblox, and justice for those that were tragically affected by their negligence. If you believe your child was targeted and groomed while playing Roblox, don’t wait. Call Anapol Weiss today at 215-608-9645 or fill out our online contact form to schedule a free and confidential consultation.
Disclaimer: This blog is intended for informational purposes only and does not establish an attorney-client relationship. It should not be considered as legal advice. For personalized legal assistance, please consult our team directly.