Roblox is introducing new safety features for children under the age of 13 following criticism of how it protects younger users.
The free-to-play online gaming platform, which has about 70 million daily users worldwide, allows players to create their own games and play games created by others.
It is especially popular among children, but some of them complain that they have encountered offensive and harmful content on the site.
Starting from December 3, game creators will be asked to inform whether their games are suitable for children under 13, and those who do not answer this question will be blocked for players aged 12 and under.
And starting November 18, children under the age of 13 will also be banned from accessing “social hangouts” – online spaces where players can communicate with each other via text and voice.
It defines “hangouts” as games where the “main theme or purpose” is to allow people to communicate with each other as themselves, rather than role-playing as a character.
Younger users will also not be able to enjoy “free-form 2D user-generated creativity” from the same date, meaning games “that allow users to draw or paint in 2D and replicate those creations to other users without the completed creation going through Roblox moderation.”
This is believed to be aimed at preventing users from writing or drawing offensive images or messages that are difficult to moderate.
“We understand that the deadline is coming soon, but we greatly appreciate your cooperation in helping us provide a safe and civilized place for users of all ages to communicate,” the Roblox developer said in a statement on its website.
Potential risks
According to media regulator Ofcom, Roblox is the most popular game in the UK among children aged 8 to 12.
But it has faced criticism over the protection of younger users, with one young person revealing in May that she was approached on Roblox and asked to show images of a sexual nature.
At the time, Ofcom, the internet safety regulator, ordered tech companies to hide “toxic” content from children and published draft codes of practice.
Since then, new problems have arisen, and in August Turkey completely blocked access to Roblox.
“As a company that is transparent with our developer community, we had to share key information about the upcoming changes before the launch,” Roblox said in a statement.
“We are constantly improving our security systems and policies – this year we have implemented over 30 improvements, and we have more to come,” the company added.
But despite the fact that the changes will start quickly, the company said it will not start implementing the requirements until 2025.
