GA Mom Sues Roblox, Claiming Sexploitation Of Son: Reports

DEKALB COUNTY, GA — A DeKalb County mom is suing the gaming platform, Roblox, after claiming her 9-year-old son was groomed and sexually exploited through the popular online app, a media report says.

Roblox, which has been under fire regarding parents' safety concerns, was used by adults who were pretending to be children and coercing the boy into sending them "explicit images of himself," the lawsuit claimed, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.

The adults harassed the boy and sent him pornographic material, the AJC reported, citing the lawsuit filed Monday in Gwinnett County.

A Roblox representative told the AJC it does not comment on pending litigation.

“Protecting children is a top priority, and we invest significant resources in advanced safety technology,” Roblox said. “We also provide significant resources for parents and do not allow any user-to-user image sharing or sexual conversation on our platform.”

Roblox, based in San Mateo, California, has been at the center of recent criticism, with parents reportedly maintaining the app can be used to connect predators to young children.

Parents assert the "unrestricted communication between users" makes way for abuse, WAGA-TV reported.

An Iowa family filed a lawsuit against Roblox after allegations that a minor was trafficked in multiple states by a 37-year-old man who was posing as a teenager on Roblox, local news outlet KCCI reported Monday.

In April, a missing 10-year-old girl was found with a 27-year-old man she met on Roblox in Kern County, California, Courthouse Service News reported.

This all came three years after a Clayton County man was accused of persuading a 13-year-old Kansas girl to live with him, WAGA-TV reported. The pair met on Roblox, and the girl was trafficked and raped, WAGA-TV reported at the time.

Last year, the National Center on Sexual Exploitation placed Roblox on its Dirty Dozen list of "mainstream contributors to sexual exploitation."

According to its online safety policy, Roblox established a tool for users to report their safety concerns. Parental controls have been put into place as Roblox acknowledged their platform "is made up of users of all ages."

The policy read, in part:

"Roblox cares about the safety of its users. If you see any content or materials on the services that appears to recruit, entice, advertise or solicit any person to perform a sexual, violent or illegal act, please contact Roblox Support and select the 'User Safety Concern' help category to immediately report the user and situation. ... Any violation of the Community Standards is considered a violation of the Roblox terms and may result in account suspension or termination. ... We work hard to promote a safe and fun environment for all. To help foster this community, we provide users and their parents/guardians with numerous safety features and controls."

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