Roblox will prevent children from accessing certain types of experiences following reports alleging that the platform has enabled child abuse.
A new measure will prevent children under 13 from accessing experiences with “certain types of interactive features,” Roblox says. in a post on their developer forum. These include “social hangouts,” where the primary goal is to communicate with others via text or voice chat, and “freeform 2D user creation” experiences, where players can do things like draw on a blackboard or blackboard. This change will take effect from November 18.
Another change prevents children under 13 from playing, seeking out or discovering unrated experiences. This change will take effect after December 3. If a creator wants to allow a player under the age of 13 to access their game, they will need to complete a questionnaire and ensure that all information about their experience meets Roblox's requirements for its current all-ages or 9 plus ratings. Roblox says it will begin enforcing those requirements “next year.”
There have been several recent stories about Roblox's alleged poor protection for children, including to Bloomberg article titled “Roblox's Pedophile Problem.” In October, the company announced changes for tween users and a new account type to allow parents to manage their children on Roblox.
