Amid growing questions about child safety on digital platforms, Roblox announced a new strategy: dividing its users into accounts according to their age to limit content and chats.
The measure seeks to offer safer and more controlled experiences for children and adolescents, according to TechCrunch. In this sense, it will introduce two types of accounts: “Roblox Kids” and “Roblox Select“, automatically assigned according to the user’s age.
Children between 5 and 9 years old will have accounts “kids“, while users aged 9 to 15 will go to “Select“. From the age of 16, users will access a standard account.
The difference is not minor: each type of account will have specific rules about what games you can watch and who you can interact with.
Roblox launches “Kids” and “Select” to protect minors. Image: Unsplash
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One of the most relevant changes is in communication.
In the accounts “kids“, chat will be disabled by default and can only be enabled if parents authorize specific contacts.
In contrast, the accounts “Select“They will allow interaction, but only with users of similar ages, a measure that seeks to reduce risks within the platform.
Additionally, parents will be able to manually approve certain games outside of automatic restrictions, adding an extra layer of oversight.
On the other hand, younger users will only have access to games with “Minimal” or “Mild” ratings, that is, experiences with mild violence or light humor.
For their part, adolescents in “Select” will be able to access “Moderate” content, while restricted content, that is, with strong violence or sensitive topics, will be exclusively for those over 18 years of age.
This movement does not come in a vacuum. Roblox has been in the eye of the storm for child safety issues, from public criticism to investigations and lawsuits related to the risk of interaction between minors and adults.
In that context, the company has begun to implement stricter age verifications and more robust moderation systems.
The bet of Roblox reflects a broader trend in the tech industry: creating age-differentiated digital environments without sacrificing user experience. However, the challenge will be to make these measures actually work in practice.
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