Photo Credit: Oberon Copeland
Los Angeles County officials are suing Roblox with allegations that the company failed to meaningfully protect children from predators on the platform.
Roblox is facing another lawsuit, this time from Los Angeles County. On Thursday, Los Angeles County officials announced filing a lawsuit against the gaming platform, alleging the company provides “an unsafe online environment that has become a breeding ground for predators.”
According to the filing, children in Los Angeles County “have been repeatedly exposed to sexually explicit content, exploitation, and grooming on Roblox because the company chooses to put corporate profit over the safety of children.” In addition, the county argues that “Roblox has failed to implement effective moderation or age verification systems, despite repeated public assurances that its platform is safe for kids.”
“This lawsuit is about protecting children from online predators and inappropriate content,” said Los Angeles County Board Chair and 1st District Supervisor Hilda L. Solis. “Roblox has a responsibility to keep kids safe, but instead it has allowed its platform to become a place where children can be exposed to grooming and exploitation. Los Angeles County is taking action to hold the company accountable and demand real safeguards.”
Roblox has made improvements to its safety protocols in recent months, such as requiring all users to verify their age with its so-called facial estimation tool. But that hasn’t been enough to shield the company from numerous lawsuits centered around children’s safety protections, or lack thereof, in states that include Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, and Texas.
Unsurprisingly, Roblox quickly released a statement disputing the claims in the Los Angeles County lawsuit.
“Roblox is built with safety at its core, and we continue to evolve and strengthen our protections every day,” the company wrote. “We have advanced safeguards that monitor our platform for harmful content and communications, and users cannot send or receive images via chat, avoiding one of the most prevalent opportunities for misuse seen elsewhere online.”
“Safety is a constant and consistent focus of our work,” Roblox’s statement continued. “We take swift action against anyone found to violate our safety rules and work closely with law enforcement to support investigations and help hold bad actors accountable.”
Roblox has previously reported approximately 151 million daily active users, over 40% of whom are under the age of 13.
“This lawsuit highlights the alarming reality of what happens when Big Tech puts profits over our children’s safety,” added Rafael Carbajal, director of the county’s Department of Consumer and Business Affairs. “Roblox has long been aware that predators use its product to target and exploit children, yet it has failed to take the actions necessary to prevent this horrific practice. Children are paying the price.”
