TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WFLA) — Florida’s attorney general issued a subpoena to the popular online gaming platform Roblox on Monday, demanding information about how the platform sets age-verification requirements, moderates chat rooms, and markets itself to children.
The subpoena also requires Roblox to hand over documents relating to its collection and processing of children’s data.
Attorney General James Uthmeier’s office said that numerous reports have been filed regarding children being exposed to graphic or harmful material on the gaming platform due to predatory adults having the ability to message minors on the app freely.
In 2024, Robox boasted more than 85 million daily active users, with an estimated 40% being under the age of 13. The system features millions of games and interactive environments with content developed both by the platform and by users.
Parents around the country have also filed at least eight lawsuits against the popular world-building and gaming app, alleging the platform makes it too easy for predators to contact, groom and even abduct children.
One such lawsuit came after a 10-year-old in California was found hours from home in May with a 27-year-old man she met on Roblox. The man was charged with kidnapping and child sex-related crimes.
Another lawsuit calls Roblox a “digital hunting ground” for child abusers. This case centers around a 13-year-old Iowa girl, who was allegedly kidnapped from her grandmother’s house and sexually abused. The suspect, a 37-year-old, had claimed to be a teenager when speaking with the victim on Roblox, according to the victim’s family.
Similar suits have been filed by families in Alabama, Florida, Indiana, New Jersey, Texas and Washington, one law firm representing the families said.
In many of the pending criminal cases and lawsuits, the alleged predators pretended to be minors themselves.
