Crime & Law
Cook County Family Suing Roblox Gaming Company Over Sexual Exploitation Allegations
Roblox offices are pictured in San Mateo, California, on March 22, 2024. (Jason Doiy / iStock)
A Cook County father is suing Roblox, the California-based online gaming platform, alleging the company’s reckless and deceptive business tactics led to the sexual exploitation of his 9-year-old son.
The lawsuit, filed in the Northern District of California where Roblox is based, accuses the gaming company of creating a breeding ground for predators and prioritizing its own profits over user safety.
“The heinous acts against (the child) were committed by dangerous child predators whose actions were possible only because of the egregiously tortious conduct of the defendant,” attorneys with the Dolman Law Group, which represents the plaintiffs, wrote in an 82-page complaint.
In response to the lawsuit, a Roblox spokesperson said the company is “deeply troubled by any incident that endangers any user.”
“Roblox aims to build a platform that sets the bar for safety online, and we prioritize the safety of our community,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “This is why our policies are purposely stricter than those found on many other platforms. We limit chat for younger users, don’t allow user-to-user image sharing, and have filters designed to block the sharing of personal information. We also understand that no system is perfect and that is why we are constantly working to further improve our safety tools and platform restrictions to ensure parents can trust us to help keep their children safe online.”
The platform has faced repeated criticism in recent years over claims it has failed to protect young users. Multiple arrests have also been made against adult users who have allegedly used the Roblox app to target minors for sex.
According to the lawsuit, the 9-year-old boy was an active user in the Roblox gaming community, which includes some 380 million active monthly users who are able to chat with one another through the platform’s app.
The lawsuit alleges he was targeted by an “adult predator” who posed as a child on the app and exploited the child’s “age and vulnerability" to build a fraudulent emotional connection to begin grooming him.
After building trust, the adult allegedly began sending graphic messages and manipulated the child into sending a sexually explicit image of himself to the adult.
“This case against Roblox is a terrifying reminder of the world we live in where capitalist greed far outweighs humanity,” attorney Matthew Dolman, of the Dolman Law Group, said in a statement. “There have never been sufficient safety measures and protocols in place, putting our youngest and most vulnerable communities into unimaginable harm’s way every second of the day. Without forcing systemic change, Roblox will continue to operate anarchically.”
According to the lawsuit, Roblox has “deliberately concealed” information about alleged “pervasive predatory conduct” that its app both “enables and facilitates.”
“Had (Roblox) taken any steps to screen users before allowing them on the apps, Plaintiff would not have been exposed to the large number of predators trolling the platform,” the lawsuit complaint states.
The lawsuit seeks monetary damages from Roblox as the child continues to endure “humiliation, shame and constant fear as well as a profound loss of trust, safety and innocence,” according to his attorneys.
In an unrelated press statement Wednesday, Roblox announced that it has begun requiring all users to complete an age verification before chatting with others on its app. This can be done by uploading a valid government ID or by allowing Roblox to analyze images and video of the users’ face.
The company called this an “important investment in user safety” that enables “age-appropriate communication and limits conversations between adults and minors.”
“Our commitment to safety is rooted in delivering the highest level of protection for our users,” Matt Kaufman, the chief safety officer at Roblox, said in a statement. “By building proactive, age-based barriers, we can empower users to create and connect in ways that are both safe and appropriate.”
