August 16, 2017 - Shelby County Today would like to share a warning for parents about an online app attracting kids - Roblox. Roblox is a popular online social platform app with thousands of user generated games which is marketed with a Minecraft type appearance attracting many young gamers.
Be warned! This is a social platform for play and there is no filter on who may be online and playing with your child. Online child predators are using the game to communicate with children.
A local parent advised they opened the game just to see what it was like. At first nothing unusual happened; however, it wasn't long in the game, a person sent them a message with sexual innuendos which a child may not understand at first. The comments continued and the predator asked for the parent (which the predator thought was a child) to follow him home in the game and then had the characters in the game make sexual movements.
The lack of moderation in the chat feature and uploaded user content leaves children at risk of exposure to a huge range of inappropriate adult content, bullying and susceptibility to online predators.
It is important for parents to be aware of what apps or games their children are using. Although efforts are made by app developers to try and protect children, there is no way for them to know the actual age of those signing up to use the game nor what that users intentions are. Therefore, use caution about what games your child is playing on their electronic devices. Notate if games have a chat feature, which many of them do, and speak to your children about online safety.
Stranger danger isn't just for in person but for online as well. Children answer questions when asked and don't think about whether that information can be used to identify them or their location and you don't want your child exposed to inappropriate content.
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