Roblox looks bright, colorful and fun. Many kids love it because they can play games, build worlds and chat with friends. But even though Roblox seems kid-friendly, it has also become a place where online predators try to contact children. Many parents don’t know how these dangers work or how to stop them. Roblox has over 80 million people playing every day, and about 65% of them are kids under 14. Kids enjoy Roblox because they can play more than 40 million different games, make their own characters, and chat and play with many friends at the same time.1
This social part is fun for kids, but it can also attract people who want to harm children. Predators use Roblox’s own tools to connect with kids. Once contact is made, predators may offer gifts, like Robux, to earn trust. Then they may slowly bring up inappropriate topics or convince the child to talk on other apps like Discord or Snapchat. Three risky areas include:1
- Private Messages: An adult might start talking in a game and then move to private messages
- Avatar Tricks: Predators may use kid-like characters to pretend they are much younger
- Role-Play Games: “Adoption centers” or “families” games blur lines between safe and unsafe
Roblox has only about 3,000 moderators watching 78 million users. In 2023, Roblox reported over 13,300 cases of child exploitation to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children… and that number is rising. These situations have led to legal actions and investigations from state and national governments. Real-life cases show how serious this can be:1
- A 27-year-old kidnapped a 10-year-old they met through Roblox
- A 10-year-old in Canada was coached to bypass safety controls
- A 9-year-old developed panic attacks after seeing sexual content
Roblox does have filters, reporting systems, and parental controls. Unfortunately, kids can still be exposed to predators even when parents believe safety settings are turned on because:1
- Adults can lie about their age when they make an account
- Many parents do not know how to set up safety features
- Reports take a long time to review and dangerous content stays online until it’s reported
You don’t need to be a tech expert to protect your child. Start with these simple steps: 1) Play Roblox with your child; 2) Turn on all safety settings; 3) Teach your child the “no secrets online” rule; 4) Watch for warning signs; and 5) Report anything that feels wrong. If you believe your child has been approached by a predator, report it on Roblox and to the proper authorities right away. 1 If you are interested in becoming an Advocate for the Innocent member and gaining access to our Resource Center ($10/month or $99/annually), visit https://advocatefortheinnocent.org/memberships/.