After a wave of child safety lawsuits and investigations, Roblox has implemented mandatory facial verification for all users who want to access chats. The company is now rolling out the requirement globally after testing it in a few markets last month.
To complete the age verification process, users must open the Roblox app, allow access to their camera, and follow a series of on-screen instructions for face verification. Once age verification is complete, Roblox says it will delete any images or videos of users. Verification is processed by a third-party vendor, Persona, which also deletes images and videos after the process is complete, Roblox says.
The company says users who are 13 or older can also choose to verify their age through ID verification instead of face verification. Roblox notes that while age checks are optional, they are required if users want to access communication features. In other words, you don’t need to verify your age to use Roblox, but you do need verification to use the chat features.
If the age verification process misjudges the user’s age, they can appeal the decision and verify their age through alternative methods, including identity verification or through parental controls that allow parents to update their child’s age.
“Using multiple signals, Roblox constantly assesses user behavior to determine if someone is significantly older or younger than expected,” the company wrote in a blog post. “In these cases, Roblox will soon ask users to repeat the age verification process.”
Once users pass an age check, they can access age-based chat, which means they can only communicate with others in a similar age group. There are six age groups: under 9, 9 to 12, 13 to 15, 16 to 17, 18 to 20 and 21 and over. Users in each age group can chat with people in the groups directly above and below their own. For example, users in the 9-12 category can chat with users in their own group, as well as users under 9 and 13-15.
Roblox says chat is turned off by default for kids under 9 unless a parent gives consent after age verification.
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The introduction of mandatory age checks comes amid multiple lawsuits, including by the attorneys general of Texas and Louisiana, against Roblox over child safety concerns. The lawsuits were filed subsequent reports that Roblox exposed young users to dangerous risks such as grooming and explicit content.
Roblox said the new age verification requirement will provide a more accurate way to verify users’ ages, compared to simply having users enter their year of birth when creating an account.
