Tennessee Becomes Sixth State to Sue Roblox Over Child Safety Concerns
Tennessee joined five other states in suing gaming platform Roblox over concerns for children’s safety. Filed in state court Thursday, the suit accuses Roblox of engaging in unfair and deceptive business practices that harm kids, in violation of the Tennessee Consumer Protection Act.
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Given that “over two-thirds of its daily active users [are] under the age of 16,” Roblox has “repeatedly” assured users and parents “that its top priority is protecting young players,” the state said. “But its assurances could not be further from the truth.”
Instead, the complaint described Roblox as a “massive, largely unsupervised online world” where there is “little functional oversight” of user interactions. In addition, Roblox fails “to erect even rudimentary guardrails against the dangers it knows exist,” it said. There's no “genuine, informed parental consent” before minors can create accounts, nor are there “age-appropriate access limits” on various experiences.
Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti (R) said in a news release, “Roblox invites children into a fantastic online world with the promise of creativity and play, but that wonderland is a trap that lets the company sell sophisticated predators access to those vulnerable kids.” Also, Skrmetti said Roblox reduced oversight and safety measures "despite repeated warnings, because less overhead meant more profit." Roblox "lied and said safety was its top priority."
But in an emailed statement to us, Matt Kaufman, Roblox's chief safety officer, said the suit, like its predecessors, “fundamentally misrepresents Roblox and how it works.” The platform “is built with safety at its core, and we continue to evolve and strengthen our protections every day.”
Kaufman said there are “advanced safeguards that monitor our platform for harmful content and communications,” and “users cannot send or receive images via chat.” He added: “Safety is a constant" at Roblox, and the company is rolling out additional safety measures. Kaufman also pledged "swift action" against violators and strong support for law enforcement and investigations of bad actors.“While no system can be perfect, our commitment to safety never ends,” Kaufman said.
Iowa (see 2512160035), Louisiana (see 2508140051), Kentucky (see 2510070042), Texas (see 2511060054) and Florida (see 2512110029) have sued Roblox for child safety risks. Other states, including South Carolina (see 2512160035), have investigated it for similar risks.