Texas has sued Roblox for allegedly enabling pedophiles to groom and expose children to sexually explicit content, turning the wildly popular online video game into “a digital playground for predators.”
The suit filed Friday by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton accused Roblox of engaging in deceptive trade practices by misleading parents into thinking its platform was safe for kids. Roblox was also accused of creating a “common nuisance” by becoming “a habitual destination for child predators” to target and groom kids.
“We cannot allow platforms like Roblox to continue operating as digital playgrounds for predators,” Paxton said in a statement. “Roblox must do more to protect kids from sick and twisted freaks hiding behind a screen. Any corporation that enables child abuse will face the full and unrelenting force of the law.”
The legal action followed similar lawsuits in Louisiana and Kentucky, as well as a host of private suits that have accused San Mateo, Calif.-based Roblox of failing to crack down on online predators that prey on children.
The new lawsuit describes Roblox as a “sprawling and unregulated digital playground that is overrun by predators and saturated with sexual content.” It also claimed that Roblox’s in-game currency, “Robux,” “provides leverage for predators to hunt and abuse children.”
“Rather than being lured by candy, modern-day predators have lured children with Robux,” the lawsuit stated.
The filing points to “dozens of FBI investigations, criminal convictions, and private lawsuits” that show how Roblox has allegedly “facilitated real child abuse and pornography,” including one Texas lawsuit in which a child who began using the platform at age 10 was “raped after being groomed through Roblox.”
Paxton’s office has requested a jury trial and asked for the court to impose various penalties, including a $10,000 fine for every violation of the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act and an injunction blocking further wrongdoing.
Roblox had a whopping 151.5 million average daily active users as of October, according to a regulatory filing. Of that total, 83% live outside the US and Canada.
As of 2024, the company disclosed that 40% of its daily users were younger than 13.
A Roblox spokesperson told The Post the firm shares Paxton’s “commitment to keeping kids and teens safe online, which is why we have implemented industry-leading protocols in an effort to protect users and remove bad actors.
“We are disappointed that, rather than working collaboratively with Roblox on this industry-wide challenge and seeking real solutions, the AG has chosen to file a lawsuit based on misrepresentations and sensationalized claims,” the spokesperson added.
Roblox has implemented “over 145 safety measures” in the last year alone and will soon role out age estimation technology that will “help prevent adults from chatting with minors,” according to the spokesperson.
With Post wires
