Roblox Faces Two New Lawsuits Over Alleged Child Grooming

Roblox is facing two new lawsuits alleging that adult predators used the gaming platform to groom girls from Oregon and Louisiana. The cases add to growing scrutiny of how online platforms protect minors. One lawsuit also names Snap Inc., Snapchat's parent company, as a defendant.

Law firm Anapol Weiss filed the complaints in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.

According to GamesBeat, one plaintiff is now 18 and is from Tillamook County, Oregon. She alleges the grooming began when she was eight. The second plaintiff is 16 and from Jefferson Parish, Louisiana. She was allegedly targeted at 14.

The Louisiana complaint alleges an adult posed as a teenager on Roblox before moving communications to Snapchat. He allegedly sent illicitly explicit material and pressured the girl to share similar content. The lawsuit also claims he attempted to arrange an in-person meeting at her home.

In the Oregon case, a predator allegedly contacted the girl through a Roblox dress-up game and lied about his age. The complaint says he manipulated her into what it describes as a romantic relationship. He then allegedly encouraged her to run away. Her mother discovered the messages and contacted law enforcement.

However, authorities reportedly investigated for years but could not locate the suspect, who was believed to be outside the U.S.

Roblox Expands Safety Controls Amid Legal Scrutiny

GamesBeat reported that more than 150 lawsuits have been filed against Roblox and other gaming-related social platforms, including Discord and Snap. The cases also come after advocacy groups urged the U.S. Federal Trade Commission to examine Roblox's child safety and business practices.

Attorneys general in several states have also sued or investigated the platform over child safety concerns.

Roblox says its chat does not allow users to share images or videos. Its filters are designed to block personal information and social media details for users under 16. Chats are not encrypted, allowing the company to monitor for potential grooming and attempts to move users off-platform.

“Criminal behavior has no place on Roblox,” a Roblox spokesperson told GamesBeat.

Roblox now requires age checks to access chat. It also recently introduced Roblox Kids and Roblox Select accounts for users under 16. The accounts add age-based content access, parental controls, communication settings, and additional experience reviews.

The latest cases put Roblox's safeguards under greater scrutiny, but the wider problem is not limited to one platform. Other online games have also been used by alleged predators.

In one federal case, a man was accused of targeting young boys through games, including Fortnite and Minecraft, on Xbox and PlayStation systems, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. Discord and Snapchat have also faced scrutiny over child safety concerns.

Roblox remains a major focus because of its large younger audience, but the cases highlight a broader challenge for gaming and social platforms to prevent predators from reaching children and moving conversations between services.