Roblox launched a mandatory age-verification system for its chat feature last week to combat allegations of child predators on the platform. The update requires users to submit either a facial age estimate through a selfie or, for those 13 and older, a government ID upload. Once verified, users can only chat with other players in the same age group.
The measure responds to growing reports of predators grooming children on Roblox. These issues prompted lawsuits from the attorneys general of Louisiana, Texas, and Kentucky. Florida’s attorney general has issued criminal subpoenas related to the platform.
Wired reported on Tuesday that the system faces significant problems less than a week after rollout. It has misclassified users in both directions, labeling some adults as children and some children as adults. For instance, a 23-year-old user was identified as 16 to 17 years old. “I don’t want to be chatting with fucking children,” the user stated. Another case involved an 18-year-old placed in the 13- to 15-year-old range.
Children have also manipulated the system to gain adult classifications. Online videos show users altering avatar images for reverse spoofing. One child drew wrinkles and stubble on their face and received a 21+ rating. Another flashed a photo of Kurt Cobain during the scan and was classified as an adult.
Roblox acknowledged additional issues last week, noting that some parents submitted age verifications on behalf of their children. This resulted in those children being placed in the 21+ category. The company stated it is “working on solutions to address” the problem and plans to share more details soon.
Developers building games on Roblox have voiced strong opposition. The platform’s developer forum features thousands of negative comments about the update, with many demanding its full reversal. One developer posted a graph illustrating a sharp decline in chat feature usage, from around 90 percent to 36.5 percent following implementation.
Several developers reported that games now feel “lifeless” or like “a total ghost town” due to reduced player interaction from the changes.
