Anika Wells puts Roblox on notice over child safety as eSafety orders overhaul to prevent potential grooming

Communications Minister Anika Wells has called out gaming giant Roblox over its compliance with Australia’s under-16s social media ban saying it has “talked a big game” but now “must deliver”.

Australia’s eSafety Commissioner confirmed on Thursday that the platform had signed a legally binding agreement to overhaul its safety measures designed to protect children from grooming, sexual exploitation and abuse.

It came after regulator Julie Inman Grant had raised concerns that it was not meeting its obligations under the Online Safety Act’s codes and standards — including “allegedly failing to have sufficient measures in place to prevent contact between adults and children under 16”.

Ms Wells told a Canberra press conference on Thursday that the parents of the app’s 1.7 million Australian child users “need to know that their children will not be approached by adults while playing the game”.

“I welcome today’s action by the eSafety Commissioner,” Ms Wells said.

“It is not good enough that, despite promises made to me in person and to the eSafety Commissioner in February, Roblox has not yet managed to clean up its act.

“Roblox has talked a big game. It must now deliver on all of its promises that they have promised Australian parents.

“And the clock is ticking. If eSafety is not satisfied within three months, Roblox will find itself explaining why it cannot prevent potential grooming in the Federal Court of Australia.”

eSafety had initially banned 10 platforms — YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, Threads, X, TikTok, Twitch, Snapchat, Reddit, and Kick.

Beyond the 10 apps eSafety identified to be included in the ban, a number of other companies admitted after self-assessments they too fall into the description.

It includes Bluesky, Yubo, Wizz, Lemon8, BigoLive, as well as dating services Tinder, Hinge, OKCupid, Plenty of Fish, Match.com and Azar.

Gaming and messaging apps were excluded from the December ban, which experts had told The Nightly at the time could prompt children to migrate to exempt platforms like Roblox.

Curtin University internet studies professor Tama Leaver warned children will either find their way around the restrictions or flood excluded gaming or messenger apps instead.

While the gaming platforms didn’t fall into the ban, eSafety released guidance on the apps and sought assurances they would enhance age checks and safety protocols.

But Ms Inman Grant on Thursday expressed concern over Roblox’s efforts.

“We have been engaging with Roblox for some time at senior levels about our concerns and the company has responded, making a number of improvements to its service,” she said.

Under the changes made to the app to protect kids, adults will not be able to contact children without parental consent, children’s accounts will be established with a default safety mode and reporting tools will be improved.

There will also be an independent third-party audit of Roblox’s safety measures and age estimation tools to ensure they’re working properly.

Ms Inman Grant said it would mark the first time such third-party auditing has been required under Australia’s Online Safety Act.

“Critically, the inclusion of third-party auditing ensures Roblox cannot mark their own homework, and there will be robust independent evaluation of these commitments,” Ms Inman Grant said.

“Ultimately, our goal is to drive companies to make their services safer for children and young people.

“Where safety by design has not been deployed comprehensively at the front end, we won’t hesitate to ensure that these risks have been responsibly remediated.

“Holding Roblox to the binding safety improvements through this enforceable undertaking is a great example of how these systemic powers can deliver real and meaningful results.”

But Roblox on Thursday said in a statement that it took user safety seriously and had rolled out a string of features to protect children on its app.

“This undertaking follows constructive dialogue with eSafety, and comes after the recent rollout of industry leading safety features on Roblox — including the introduction of new Roblox Kids and Select accounts for under-16s,” a spokesman said.

“We have delivered on the commitments we made to eSafety over the last 12 months and will continue to work towards our shared goal of keeping Australian children safe online.”

In May, Australia was one of the first countries where Roblox rolled out new age-based accounts for users aged under 16, called “Roblox Kids” and “Roblox Select”.

It was also the first large online gaming platform to require facial age checks for users of all ages to access its chat feature.