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The company banned a YouTuber who had exposed many child predators and got them arrested. Now, it has come under fire for enabling predatory behaviour and its lack of child safety protocols.
Roblox has been an integral part of many of our childhoods. In the digital era, the platform provides users with multiple experiences to interact with, ranging from entertainment to education.
Just months ago, it was in the limelight for holding one of the most popular experiences ever played: Grow a Garden, which saw an average of millions of users online daily.
Now, the platform is once again in the spotlight. This time, however, for a darker reason – child predators.
What happened?
Since last October, a YouTuber who goes by the name Schlep has been posting videos of sting operations within Roblox and self-identifying himself as a ‘predator hunter’. Through these undertakings, he aimed to expose child predators on the platform by creating decoy accounts with his team, posing as minors. They would then lure out predators, who would then engage in explicit conversations.
According to Schlep, he has worked with law enforcement and provided thorough documentation. Additionally, his videos have also covered the arrest of 6 individuals. Much of Schlep’s endeavours are tied to his childhood experience of being groomed on the platform and Roblox not taking any action despite his mother reporting abuse.
Nevertheless, on August 9th, Roblox issued a cease and desist and banned him from the platform. They also threatened legal action should his activities be continued. The company accused him of breaching their terms through ‘vigilante tactics’ and interfering with their protocols.
Simulated child endangerment conversations and violating user privacy guidelines were also cited as part of the ban.
Roblox’s history of lawsuits
After Roblox banned Schlep, there was a wave of public outcry. Since starting these sting operations, the YouTuber had been vocal about his efforts to work with the company to improve their safety protocols, protecting children. Yet, Roblox took exception to his methods in safeguarding the platform’s key demographic.
That doesn’t mean to say Roblox has the situation under control, though. The game has found itself at the centre of multiple lawsuits in the past few years, most of which relate to cases of child sexual abuse, grooming, and/or exploitation on the platform.
In the past year alone, the states of Louisiana and Florida both filed lawsuits against the company for enabling the behaviour of child predators on the platform. Louisiana’s grievance came after Schlep’s ban, in response to Roblox’s questionable handling of the issue.
Florida’s Attorney General, meanwhile, issued a subpoena to Roblox, demanding documents of its collection and processing of children’s data.
