When Play Isn’t Safe: A Mom, a Legal Professional, and the Roblox Reality
As both a mom and a legal professional, I wish I were writing this as just another internet safety PSA. I wish I could keep my concern at the same level as “don’t click suspicious links” or “set strong passwords.” But after reading the latest lawsuit against Roblox—alleging child exploitation, grooming, and even trafficking—it’s impossible to shrug this off.
Because my kids play Roblox. And chances are, so do yours.
The Bright Side We All Fell For
When my children first discovered Roblox, it felt like a dream platform. They could design their own games, play with friends, and explore new worlds from the safety of our living room. No questionable ads. No public forums like the old days of the internet. It seemed, at least at first glance, like a safe, creative playground.
And I wanted to believe that—because watching my kids laugh while building virtual homes or trading pets felt harmless.
The Dark Side That Parents Don’t See
The lawsuits paint a very different picture.
In one case, a 9-year-old boy was allegedly groomed and extorted over months by a predator who used the platform to gain his trust. In another, a 13-year-old girl was kidnapped after being targeted in-game. A Texas case involves a 16-year-old coerced into sending explicit images, later assaulted in real life.
I have read enough legal complaints to know these aren’t just “worst case scenarios” or isolated incidents. They’re part of a broader pattern—one where predators exploit the same features that make Roblox fun: open chats, user-generated content, and anonymity.
From a Legal Perspective: Where the System Breaks
Roblox has a legal duty to make reasonable efforts to protect its users—especially when 40% of them are under the age of 13. While the company has invested in AI moderation and age-verification tools, these systems are largely reactive. They catch what’s reported, flagged, or obvious—but grooming is often subtle and calculated.
In legal terms, this raises questions about foreseeability. If the platform knows it’s being used as a hunting ground for children, it can’t just point to filters and AI bots as proof of safety. That’s where negligence claims start to stick.
Where Parents Come In
I’m not advocating for panic. But I am advocating for awareness and a healthy dose of parental oversight:
Play Together First: Learn the games your kids love. Predators gravitate toward certain “hangout” or “dating” games.
Tighten Privacy Settings: Roblox allows you to limit who can chat with, message, or join your child. Use these features.
Talk About Grooming: Teach your kids that “online friends” are still strangers. Encourage them to tell you about uncomfortable conversations.
Check the Friend List: My kids know I can log in anytime to see who they’ve connected with.
Where Roblox Must Step Up
From both a mom’s and a legal professional’s view, here’s what I think needs to change:
Mandatory Age Verification for all accounts—not just for certain features.
Proactive Human Moderation in high-risk game types and public spaces.
Parental Dashboards with real-time alerts about suspicious behavior or flagged chats.
Transparent Safety Reporting so parents know exactly how often these incidents happen and how they’re handled.
Why This Matters
My kids see Roblox as a place to build, explore, and have fun. But predators see it as an opportunity. That’s the reality. And until platforms like Roblox put child safety above growth metrics, the gap between what we think is safe and what actually is will remain dangerously wide.
We—parents, lawmakers, and yes, companies and corporations—owe our children more than that. Because in the end, I’m not just speaking as a legal professional. I’m speaking as a mom who wants her kids’ creativity to flourish without fear.