Roblox to tighten age checks, restrict adult-child chats

Roblox agreed to changes to its age-verification and chat systems after settling claims with multiple states for more than $35 million. The company will require facial age estimation or government ID checks, block most chats between adults and users under 16 unless they are added as trusted friends, and operate separate account tiers for children, teens and adults.

Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall announced a $12.2 million settlement on April 21. West Virginia reached an $11 million agreement the same day. Nevada secured $12 million a week earlier. State officials said the settlements stem from complaints that Roblox did not adequately protect children from predators and misled parents about safety measures.

Under Alabama’s terms, Roblox must run age checks for all accounts using facial age estimation or a government ID beginning May 1. The company must monitor account behavior to detect users who lie about their age. Adults and users under 16 will be prevented from chatting with one another unless they are added to a trusted-friend list via QR code or phone-contact import. Accounts that do not complete age verification will be blocked from chat. Communication involving any minor must not be encrypted so law enforcement can access messages during investigations. West Virginia’s agreement requires the platform to alert minors the first time they enter a private chat.

Roblox already limited chat for unverified users in January. Under the new terms, the platform will restrict game access for accounts that do not verify age. Beginning in June, Roblox will operate three account levels: Roblox Kids for ages 5–8, which will ban all chat and allow only games labeled “minimal” or “mild”; Roblox Select for ages 9–15; and standard accounts for users 16 and older. Accounts that skip age verification will be placed in the Roblox Kids tier.

Each settlement specifies how the funds will be used. Alabama’s $12.2 million will fund school resource officers through the state’s Safe School Initiative. Nevada’s agreement directs money to the Boys & Girls Club, nondigital activities, a law-enforcement liaison and an online-safety awareness campaign. West Virginia plans to spend $500,000 on safety-education workshops for parents and children, $1.5 million on a three-year public safety campaign, and $2.4 million to employ a dedicated internet-safety specialist for six years.

Prosecutors in other states have filed or prepared similar claims. Texas, Florida, Louisiana, Iowa, Nebraska, Kentucky and Tennessee are pursuing suits alleging Roblox exposed children to risk and misled parents. Los Angeles County filed a lawsuit in February. Families have brought nearly 80 federal lawsuits in California. Australia’s eSafety Commissioner issued legally enforceable transparency notices to Roblox and other companies, backed by fines of A$825,000 per day for noncompliance.

Some complaints and outside researchers have raised concerns about the reliability of Roblox’s age-verification tools. A Nebraska complaint alleges the company’s systems misclassified users’ ages, placed adults in child chat groups and allowed age-verified accounts for young children to be traded on third-party marketplaces. Researchers reported finding an exposed frontend for Roblox’s Persona age-check tool and said it appeared to run facial recognition against watchlists. The settlements resolve the states’ claims and require changes to account and chat policies; state attorneys general and outside researchers continue to review the company’s age-verification technology and its enforcement.