EPIC, Coalition Call on FTC to Investigate Roblox’s Manipulative Design Harms

On Wednesday, EPIC joined child safety advocacy organizations including Fairplay and the National Center on Sexual Exploitation to urge the FTC to investigate Roblox for employing manipulative design features to exploit children.  

The Request for Investigation detailed how Roblox, a popular online gaming platform for kids, puts its young users at risk. Roblox uses engagement-maximizing design that makes it difficult for kids to log off, offers a currency system that makes it easy for kids to spend large amounts of real money, and provides chat features that put kids at risk of predation and abuse by enabling adults to easily interact with them. 

Roblox estimates that about 40% of its more than 130 million daily users are under 13 years old; Children as young as 5 can create accounts on the platform. 

The coalition’s filing outlines how “Roblox’s design and business model put the company’s interests directly at odds with children’s developmental needs, causing them real-world harm.” 

EPIC regularly advocates for privacy for minors online and platform accountability and governance policies that protect the speech, privacy, anti-discrimination, and safety rights of all internet users. In court, EPIC has filed amicus briefs in cases involving the intersection of privacy, kids’ safety, and First Amendment.