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Understanding the Risks and Protective Measures for Kids on Roblox
Roblox, a widely popular gaming platform with more than 70 million daily active users, many of whom are children, raises concerns for parents regarding its safety. This article by Mytour provides a comprehensive guide on what parents should know about Roblox's safety for kids.
Is Roblox Safe for Younger Children?
There are several risks associated with Roblox, including exposure to inappropriate content, encounters with predators, bullying, scams, hacking, and even gaming addiction. Nevertheless, parents can take measures to reduce these risks and create a safer experience for their children.
How to Protect Your Child on Roblox
Is Roblox Safe for Kids?
Roblox carries some potential dangers for kids. While the platform is largely safe, it does have its risks. Roblox enforces Community Standards that all users must adhere to. The platform also employs both AI and human moderators to oversee content and behavior. Additionally, there are various safety features available for parents to use to ensure their children's safety.
- Despite these efforts, Roblox's open platform, which includes many young users, can attract individuals with ill intentions. As a result, some inappropriate content or behavior may still occur.
- Although Roblox does not set a specific age recommendation, most experts advise against allowing children under 13 to use the platform.
What Is Roblox?
Roblox is a vast online gaming and social platform. It enables users to create, share, and play games and worlds crafted by others. Apart from games, Roblox includes a chat feature for communication between players. Roblox combines gaming, social interactions, and creativity all in one.
- Robux: While Roblox is free to play, it includes a virtual currency, Robux, which can be bought with real money. This currency allows players to purchase in-game items and avatar customization options, representing each player’s personal online identity.
Potential Risks of Roblox
Inappropriate content. Roblox is a platform driven by user-generated content, which means that users can create games that may contain inappropriate material, such as violence or explicit content. While Roblox has moderation policies in place to block such content, some users may attempt to bypass these filters and share harmful material.
Online predators. Roblox includes a chat feature that lets users communicate with one another. Unfortunately, online predators might exploit these chats to make contact with children. Although Roblox has moderators monitoring public chats, private conversations are not under the same scrutiny.
Cyberbullying. Like any other online platform that allows anonymous user accounts and interactions, Roblox can unfortunately become a venue for cyberbullying. This type of abuse can lead to emotional distress, causing children to withdraw socially. Around 70% of U.S. students report having witnessed cyberbullying at some point.
Scams and Fraud. Roblox features an in-game currency called Robux, which can be purchased with real money. This attracts scammers who often target children with fraudulent schemes to steal their Robux.
Hacking. Hackers may attempt to compromise children's accounts to steal login details and gain control. If any Robux are tied to the account, it could result in financial loss. Furthermore, if a child uses the same password across multiple platforms, hackers might gain access to other personal accounts as well.
Viruses and malware. While Roblox itself is safe to download and install, there are numerous deceptive programs out there that promise free Robux or claim to be modifications or add-ons for Roblox. These fraudulent programs may contain viruses or malware that can harm your computer or compromise your private information.
Gaming addiction. Like many online games, Roblox can become addictive, and some children may spend excessive amounts of time on the platform. This can have negative consequences on their everyday lives, including affecting their social and academic performance.
What Can Parents Do?
Ensure correct age during sign-up. If your child wishes to play Roblox, create an account for them and make sure to input their accurate age. For children under 13, specific safety features are automatically enabled.
- Roblox now requires age verification for users over the age of 13.
Disable the chat feature. To protect your child from potential interactions with strangers or online predators, you can disable the chat option. For children under 13, this feature is disabled by default. For older children, follow these steps to disable the chat:
- Log into your child's account.
- Click on the gear icon in the upper-right corner.
- Select Settings.
- Go to the Privacy tab.
- Under "Who can message me," select "No One" or "Friends".
- For "Who can text chat with me in-app," choose "No One".
- For "Who can text chat with me," select "No One".
- Turn off the toggle next to "Use microphone to chat with voice".
Activate age restrictions. Parents can set age limits on their child's account, ensuring they only have access to games and experiences that are labeled as appropriate for all ages. Follow these steps to enable age restrictions:
- Log into your child's account.
- Click on the gear icon in the upper-right corner.
- Select Settings.
- Click on the Parental Controls tab on the left.
- Toggle the switch next to the appropriate age restriction for your child (i.e., All ages, 9+, 13+, 17+).
Set up a parental PIN. Adding a PIN to your child's account will prevent them from making any changes without your consent. The PIN will need to be entered for any alterations to their account settings. To set up a PIN for your child's account, follow these steps:
- Log into your child's account.
- Click on the gear icon in the upper-right corner.
- Select Settings.
- Click on the Parental Controls tab.
- Toggle the switch beneath "Parent PIN".
- Click Add Email and follow the prompts to verify your email address (if not already added).
- Enter a PIN.
- Confirm your PIN by entering it again.
Discuss online safety with your children. Ensure that they understand the importance of not engaging with strangers online and that they should never meet anyone they've interacted with virtually in person. Make sure they are aware that their login credentials and personal information should never be shared, not even with close friends.
Play games with your kids. This allows you to see firsthand how they interact with the platform while also giving you a chance to familiarize yourself with its features and safety settings.
Teach your children how to report and block users. Spend time with your kids to familiarize them with the platform's interface. Show them how to block and report users who engage in harassment, bullying, or solicitation. Let them know that it's always safe to come to you if they experience any such behavior.
Keep an eye on your child's activity. Ensure they are playing games in a visible area where you can easily monitor their behavior. Avoid letting them play behind closed doors. Regularly log into their account to check on their activity, including reviewing their chats, messages, and the games they’ve been playing.
Install antivirus protection. Make sure that your computer or your child's mobile device is equipped with antivirus software. Inform your child that they should never download or install any apps or mods without your consent. Remind them that the only legitimate way to obtain Robux is to buy them in the game. There are no apps or add-ons that offer free Robux.
