Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier has ramped up his investigation into Roblox, the hugely popular online gaming platform, issuing a criminal subpoena after evidence surfaced that sexual predators are exploiting the game to target minors.“Multiple investigations have revealed that sexual predators are using Roblox to access, communicate with, and groom minors,” Uthmeier said in a video posted on X. “Roblox profited off of our kids while exposing them to the most dangerous of harms. They enabled our kids to be abused. Companies like Roblox have become breeding grounds for predators to get to and have access to our kids.”The attorney general said predators have used the in-game currency, Robux, to bribe children into sending sexually explicit images. He added that victims accuse Roblox of failing to enforce adequate safety measures and of not warning parents of the risks.“These criminal subpoenas will enable us to gather more information for our prosecutors about the criminal activity taking place on Roblox’ platform as well as evidence on the predators that are out there and the victims that are abused,” Uthmeier said.
Robxlox responds
Roblox responded that it shares the goal of keeping children safe and will continue to cooperate with the investigation, according to Florida Phoenix. “We have a strong record of working with law enforcement and investing in advanced safety systems to help protect our users and remove bad actors. To safeguard users, we prohibit the sharing of images and videos in the chat, use filters designed to block the exchange of personal information, and we are working to implement age estimation for all users accessing chat features,” the company said.Uthmeier appeared on Fox & Friends First to explain the investigation, noting that Florida authorities have arrested over 1,000 child predators this year alone, many linked to Roblox. He described predators posing as children, engaging in long-term conversations, and in some cases, committing physical abuse.Roblox has previously appeared on the National Center on Sexual Exploitation’s Dirty Dozen list for 2023 and 2024, which highlights entities accused of enabling or profiting from sexual abuse.
