Roblox, the popular online gaming platform that has faced scrutiny over allegations of misleading investors and concerns about children’s exposure to inappropriate content, is implementing changes to address these issues.
In a post on Roblox developers forum, the company has announced that it is “updating experience guideline policies to keep our younger users safe.” A report by Hindenburg Research in October highlighted the presence of sexually explicit content within the platform, raising concerns about child safety.
Roblox has denied the charges.
Two changes that Roblox is bringing to protect minors
Roblox said that it is bringing two changes on the platform: Unrated experiences non-accessible and restricting access to social hangouts to users under 13.
By default, users under the age of 13 will not be able to play, search, and discover unrated experiences. This will ensure that parents and users have more clarity into the types of content available on Roblox and will help them make more informed choices about what they want to play.
We will be restricting access to Social Hangouts and Free-form User Creation experiences to users ages 13+.
This means that starting December 3, Roblox will require creators to complete a questionnaire for each experience they wish to make available to users under 13. This questionnaire will help ensure that all experiences accessible to young users are age-appropriate and meet Roblox’s community standards.
As a result of this change, any unrated experiences will be hidden from search results and recommendations for users under 13. These users will still be able to access these experiences via direct link, but they will no longer be easily discoverable.
The second big change is restricting social hangouts and free-form user creation for users under 13. Starting November 18, experiences featuring social hangouts and free-form 2D user creation will only be available to users 13 and older.
This restriction applies to experiences where the primary purpose is socialising and communicating with other users, such as “vibe games” and virtual clubs.
