Roblox starts age verification system to unlock unfiltered chats

Roblox announced the start of age-verification technology Thursday for users who want to chat more freely on the social-gaming platform as part of its new “trusted connections” feature.

Roblox Chief Safety Officer Matt Kaufman said that the company felt it was the right time to implement age-estimation software to coincide with “features that we really believe are something that should be limited to an older audience — 13 and over.”

The company’s use of age-screening tech, provided by the identity verification company Persona, comes as several states, like Utah, have established age-verification laws requiring app store owners like Apple and Google to verify the age of their users.

Social media companies like Meta, X and Snap contend that app store operators should be tasked with verifying people’s ages, while Apple and Google have argued otherwise.

Roblox’s use of age-estimation tech will help the company “confirm the age of our users and give them more tailored and age-appropriate features,” said Ryan Ebanks, a Roblox principal product manager for social products.

Users over 13 years old will be prompted to use the facial-analysis software to estimate their age and determine whether they can access the new “trusted connections” feature that allows them to engage in private, unfiltered chats with other age-screened users, Ebanks said.

What used to be known as a Roblox user’s “friends” will now be called “connections,” said Ebanks.  

A Roblox user’s “trusted connections” are essentially a subset of their connections that they “know and trust” and can communicate with on the platform without experiencing certain content filters that proactively screen for offensive language deemed inappropriate for children, Ebanks explained.

Teenagers between the ages of 13 and 17 must use a QR scan or Roblox’s contact importer tool to add other users they know in real life who are over the age of 18 as trusted connections, the company said.

Kaufman said that up until now, all private messages have been filtered to block profanity and things that are “inappropriate for a platform of all ages.”

Roblox believes that by implementing age-screening to access unfiltered chats, the company can “create an opportunity for teens and adults to stay on Roblox and have their open communications happening here rather than going to other platforms,” Kaufman said.  

The company will continue to proactively monitor all conversations on the platform for “critical harms,” he said.

If Roblox users have previously used their ID documentation to verify their age in order to access certain mature games on the platform, they will not have to use the age-estimation technology, Roblox said in a blog post. The the age-estimation software is “optional,” and users “over 13 can still verify their age using a government-issued ID instead, and, in the future, verified parental consent,” the blog post said.

The company also debuted new privacy and well-being tools that will let users see how much time they spend on Roblox, set daily time limits, activate a “do not disturb” mode, and access online status control features.

Roblox said that parents, with their teens’ permission, will also be able to set up linked Roblox accounts allowing them to view their teens’ connections and trusted connections, how much time they spend on Roblox and its various games, and insights on their transactions and spending.

In February, Roblox and Discord were sued over allegations that their respective platforms let online predators discover and connect with underage victims.

Reddit this week also began using age-verification technology from Persona to ensure that its United Kingdom users under the age of 18 would be prevented from viewing certain kinds of mature content to comply with the country’s Online Safety Act.

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