Roblox rolls out age-based accounts as part of child safety push

In recent years, one of the most popular online gaming platforms, 'Roblox,' has come under scrutiny over child safety concerns.

Many countries, including China, Russia, Turkey, Iran, Iraq, Qatar, Oman, Jordan, Algeria, Egypt, and North Korea, have blocked Roblox primarily due to concerns regarding child safety, inappropriate content, and data security.

Reflecting upon the growing concerns, videogame platform Roblox on Monday introduced tailored accounts for young users in a push to shore up online safety as it deals with intense global ‌scrutiny over concerns of child endangerment.

Through the company's age-check system or parental verification, Roblox will assign users aged 5 to 8 to "Roblox Kids" accounts and users aged 9 to 15 to "Roblox Select" accounts. 

As informed, these age-restricted accounts will roll out in early June.

"We will also introduce, at the same time, new requirements on what content standards must be met in order to have content or games appear in either the Roblox Kids account or the Roblox Select account," Chief Safety Officer Matt Kaufman said in a press briefing.

Over the past few years, Roblox has come under heavy criticism from governments around the world over accusations of failure to protect children from sexual predators ‌and exploitation.

Games that appear in "Roblox Kids" accounts will be limited based on maturity levels and have to go through a "rigorous three-step review process" with strict eligibility requirements for the creators, Kaufman said.

The chat feature is turned off by default for "Kids" accounts but is gradually turned on for "Select" accounts based on age.

As part of the three-step review process, the gaming platform will require developers to verify their IDs, enable two-step verification, and maintain an active 'Roblox Plus' subscription.

Roblox recently announced it will launch the subscription plan, aimed at its users from April 30.

Additionally, the newly introduced subscription plan will cost $4.99 per month and include discounts on in-game items and avatars, as well as platform benefits.