Roblox is a US-based company and one of the largest gaming platforms around today. In 2024, there was an average of 80 million players a day. The game is easily accessible to download and play, whether it is on the website, Google Play store or the App Store. PEGI, the regulation company which provides age classifications for video games previously gave Roblox a rating of 7. But recently it has changed to a symbol of an exclamation mark, meaning parental guidance recommended. Despite this, in the UK the site is most popular among children aged 8-12, and parents are complaining the game’s content is not appropriate for their children.
Some Roblox users have experienced forms of grooming and cyberbullying. Others have noted that among the 40 million user-generated games, harmful and explicit content is also managing to be shared and seen. Clearly these are serious issues which children are being subjected to, so what is Roblox doing about it?
Well, Baszucki claims that Roblox’s safety tools keep its users safe. For those caught breaking the platforms policies there are temporary time-outs and bans. Also, there’s constant monitoring of the chat interactions to ensure that inappropriate language and content is not being shared. There are parental controls on the site, but some parents may not be aware of these. Reports and complaints prove that these safety policies are not doing enough.
As proven, safety filters can be bypassed when creating fake accounts with a random age. Players have also found ways to re-word chats and bypass filters. Parents are finding it hard to manage their children’s online presence, especially as monitoring them is difficult and they have pressure from other kids playing the game. Therefore, parents are reliant on gaming platforms to ensure that the sites are suitable for children. While defending the platform, Baszucki recommends that parents should be making those decisions to keep children off the site and I do agree with him to an extent…
Gaming platforms can only do so much; the site is meant for anyone, any age, children are not the main demographic. Parental regulation should be taking a greater place in children’s online safety. I believe online safety should be taught as young as primary school children, and for parents as well. Being able to spot signs of grooming and harm needs to be properly educated. Parents must step up to keep their children safe on Roblox.
Keep kids off Roblox if worried, CEO Dave Baszucki tells parents - BBC News