BBC investigation finds virtual sex parties happening in children's computer game Roblox
Sex parties are happening in popular children’s computer game Roblox, a BBC investigation has found.
It revealed there were secret gaming areas in Roblox known as “condos” where users could talk about sex, and where their avatars could have virtual sex, defying the games’ rules.
Roblox is an online platform which released in 2006 where users go to play games developed by other users and has gained in popularity over time. In 2020, Roblox told Bloomberg two-thirds of all US children between the ages of nine and 12, used the game.
Roblox has more than 40 million users each day across the globe, according to the company’s reporting.
* Roblox, a hugely popular online world, has been down for half a day * Chinese police bust 'world's largest' video game cheating ring worth $107 million * Police alarmed at number of teens filming themselves naked and posting online
"We know there is an extremely small subset of users who deliberately try to break the rules," a spokesperson told the BBC.
"We conduct a safety review of every single image, video, and audio file uploaded to Roblox, using a combination of human and machine detection," it said.
But the problem seems to come down to an issue of timing.
The BBC reported condo games are usually only live for a short time - often less than an hour - before they are discovered and taken down.
Roblox says it uses manual and automated systems to take the games offline when they are discovered.
It also told the BBC they had developed 'Parental Control' tools, "that can be used to restrict who children interact with and which experiences they can access".
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