Florida just made Roblox’s safety issues a criminal matter.
Roblox is once again under fire, this time from Florida’s top prosecutor. State Attorney General James Uthmeier has launched a criminal probe into the gaming platform, accusing it of being a “breeding ground for predators” that puts children in danger.
In a video posted on X on Tuesday (21 October), Uthmeier claimed Roblox has “enabled our kids to be abused,” saying the company profits from its young audience while failing to keep them safe. His office has issued criminal subpoenas to Roblox Corp (RBLX.N), allowing prosecutors to gather evidence tied to alleged predators and victims on the platform.
Roblox’s troubled record on child protection
The latest action from Florida adds to a growing wave of scrutiny surrounding Roblox’s safety standards. The platform, which boasts tens of millions of active users worldwide, many of them children, has long faced questions over its ability to protect younger audiences.
Concerns were first amplified in October last year following a short-seller report from Hindenburg Research, which accused Roblox of failing to safeguard minors from harmful or exploitative content. Since then, the company has been under increasing legal pressure globally.
Earlier this year, Louisiana’s attorney general filed a lawsuit alleging that Roblox was “overrun with harmful content and child predators.” The lawsuit was followed by a case in San Francisco, with both accusing Roblox of lacking sufficient moderation, and allowing predators to exploit children.
In response, Roblox Corporation introduced several safety measures aimed at restoring public trust. Less than a year ago, the company rolled out new parental controls in a bid to strengthen children’s safety on the platform. Then, just two months ago, and days after the Louisiana lawsuit, it tightened rules on romantic and sexual content, restricting roleplay and explicit interactions to reinforce its stance on youth protection.
In an emailed statement to Reuters, Roblox's development team said that it prohibits the sharing of images and videos in chat, and uses filters to block personal information exchanges. It also confirmed that it is working on age estimation systems for all users accessing chat features.
“While no system is perfect, our trained teams and automated tools continuously monitor communications to detect and remove harmful content,” a Roblox spokesperson said.
Beyond the United States, Roblox is also facing growing resistance abroad. Iraq recently banned the platform, with government representatives saying that it exposes children and adolescents to “potential exploitation or cyber-extortion” and that its content was “incompatible with social values and traditions.”
Other countries have taken similar steps. China has blocked Roblox due to concerns over Western influence and content control, while Jordan and Turkey cited explicit and inappropriate content as reasons for their bans. Middle Eastern countries like Oman, Qatar and Kuwait have banned the platform. Kuwait’s Ministry of Information has requested a block following public complaints about violent and inappropriate content, and Guatemala imposed restrictions citing risks to minors.
Despite these challenges, Roblox continues to invest heavily in moderation, AI-driven content scanning and communication safety tools to rebuild trust among parents and regulators. But as legal actions pile up, from San Francisco to Florida, the company faces one of its toughest tests yet: proving that a platform built for creativity can also guarantee protection for its youngest players.
