Roblox Enhances Parental Controls: 'There's Always More To Be Done'

Roblox Corp. RBLX announced new tools today designed to enhance safety for its young user base, which includes a significant number of children. These updates allow parents to remotely manage their child's account, view their friends list, and set limits on playtime.

Starting today, Roblox is simplifying its content labeling system and restricting games and experiences available to children under nine by default. In the coming months, additional measures will limit users under 13 from directly messaging others outside games and restrict in-game communication to public messages only.

See Also: Roblox Denies Hindenburg’s Accusations Of Inflating Metrics, Failing At Child Safety — Calls Them ‘Misleading’

"We've spent nearly two decades building strong safety systems, but we know there's always more to be done," said Matt Kaufman, Roblox's chief safety officer. "Last quarter saw a record average for daily active users on Roblox—over 88 million—and as our platform has grown in scale, we have always recognized that our approach to safety must evolve with it. Today's launch represents the next stage in that evolution."

These changes follow recent updates requiring parental permission for children to use some in-game chat features and banning social hangout experiences for users under 13. Roblox attributed the latter decision to "user behavior that can potentially pose a risk."

Ongoing Safety Concerns

Roblox has faced criticism over its handling of safety on the platform. A Bloomberg report earlier this year revealed 13,316 instances of child exploitation reported by Roblox in 2023, with over two dozen arrests resulting from in-game interactions.

In response, Roblox says it has consulted experts from organizations such as the National Association for Media Literacy Education (NAMLE) and the Family Online Safety Institute (FOSI) to develop these new safety features.

The company noted that these updates stem from internal research involving surveys with parents and children and input from child safety organizations.

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