Roblox: A parent’s guide to keeping your kids safe

Grow a garden. 99 nights in the forest. Steal a Brainrot.

If you’re a parent, you’ve probably heard your kids talking about one of these Roblox games at some point. They play Roblox. They are friends who play Roblox. Half of children under 16 in the United States are playing Roblox.

Unfortunately, with so many kids on Roblox, predators are taking advantage of the online gaming platform. And, therefore, Roblox has has been hit with a killed of lawsuits for its alleged failure to keep children safe on the platform.

So, is Roblox safe for your kids? If your child already uses Roblox, what should you do?

As a father of three young children, two of whom play Roblox regularly and one who will likely start playing as soon as she learns to hold a tablet, I created this guide to help other parents navigate Roblox and keep their children safe while playing the game.

What should Roblox and should my kids play it?

Roblox is an online game in which your character can explore a virtual universe and interact with other Roblox characters. The world of Roblox is a cartoon, with LEGO-like characters.

At this point, Roblox feels more like a gaming platform than a standalone game. Roblox users create their own games in the virtual world, which other Roblox players can play. Roblox even has its own economy, with some Roblox game developers earning hundreds of thousands of dollars or more if their game becomes popular. There is an in-game virtual currency called Robux, which can be used to access premium features and items.

Due to the nature of Roblox, it has received an official ESRB rating of T for Teen. However, this is simply because some games deserve this level of rating. If your child tells you they play Roblox, that doesn’t give you much information. It’s the equivalent of telling you they play video games. You need to know exactly what games they play on Roblox to get an idea of ​​what is appropriate and what is not.

Obviously, it’s up to you to decide whether your children play it or not. But I decided it was good for my kids, the same way I let them watch their favorite kids’ shows on Netflix. There are many adult films available, but with proper parental controls and monitoring, you can also find age-appropriate content for your children.

Getting started on Roblox

So you’ve decided that your child can play on Roblox. Now, this is where you’ll find out that Roblox actually has several parental controls to keep children safe on the platform. However, parents need to take the time to put these things in place.

First things first: create your Roblox accounts.

That’s right, I said “accounts” as in more than one. Your child will have an account, and so will you. Create your accounts, then from your child’s account, go to Settings > Parental Controls > Add Parent. Enter your account email, then accept the account link request in your inbox. You will need to verify your age and ID to show that you are a parent.

Link a parent account
Credit: Roblox

Once your account is linked, parents will need to set up a parental PIN to access these parental controls and prevent their children from changing them. After that, you will then have full access to control your child’s account settings and view any pending requests your child receives.

Parental Controls and Content

Roblox offers several options to keep your child safe on the platform. However, you should proactively configure these items.

In your account’s Parental Controls settings, under Content Maturity, parents can set content restrictions based on the maturity level of the content itself, with levels ranging from Minimal, which means occasional mild violence, up to Restricted, which allows unfettered access to the most violent, frightening, and crude content on Roblox. You probably don’t want the latter. There are two intermediate labels for older children, mild and moderate, and these settings can be changed by a parent at any time.

Content Maturity Metrics
Credit: Roblox

Blocked Experiences allows parents to block specific game titles in Roblox, even if they are technically within the content maturity options you set in the previously mentioned menu. As games are added to Roblox, parents may find a specific game that adheres to Roblox’s content labels but still contains an attribute that makes the content inappropriate for their child. Parents can use the search bar to find these experiences and block them.

Likewise, there is a Sensitive Issues option to block your child’s games that may be themed around social, political, or religious issues. Parents can choose to block games labeled as sensitive issues here, even if those titles meet the previously set content maturity parameters.

Sensitive Issue Settings
Credit: Roblox

Child Safety Checks

Now come the privacy controls that directly address the child safety issues that Roblox is under scrutiny for.

In the Communications section of Parental Controls, parents can set who their children can communicate with in Roblox experiences. For young children, the option is simple: turn off these chats completely by selecting “Nobody.”

Chat experience settings
Credit: Roblox

However, as your children get a little older and want to interact with their real friends from school, you will want to set additional options. Roblox allows users to “friend” each other through connections. Additionally, they can create a party or a group of friends who can share experiences together.

Parents can view and manage all of their child’s connections to ensure they are only connected with people they know and trust in real life. Additionally, parents can adjust the visibility of their child’s profile so that only Connections can see when their child is on Roblox and what game they are currently playing.

Visibility Settings
Credit: Roblox

Additionally, parents can control party settings so their child can only create a party with users who are their connections. Parents can also turn off party options completely for younger children who won’t interact with anyone on Roblox.

Party Settings
Credit: Roblox

Private servers are another setting that will likely be very different for you depending on the age of your child. Private servers essentially allow users to participate in Roblox experiences with a select group of people. For small children, you will probably want to turn this option off completely. For older kids, setting Private Servers to Connections will allow them to play with their friends.

Private Server Settings
Credit: Roblox

While Roblox can always do more to protect its youngest users, the platform has some pretty robust options for child safety. The problem is that parents need to be aware of them and learn how to use them. Hope this guide helps you.