Is your child in danger using Roblox?

From the College's Wellbeing Team (image credit: Network of Wellbeing)
From Karen Mahar - Assistant Principal, Deputy Head of Junior School
karen.mahar@radford.act.edu.au
The health and wellbeing of our students remains a priority for all in our community. One aspect that continues to be a challenge is the safety of our students online.
Roblox's popularity has spiked since the COVID-19 restrictions and now sits at a staggering 146 million monthly active players worldwide.
Roblox has become a very popular platform that many of our students are using, and may have some partially hidden dangers, along with some inappropriate content.
In a recent article on the Cyber Safety and Education website www.informandempower.com parents are urged to consider some of the concerns around the popular Roblox. To access the article please click here.
Identified concerns
- There is a lot of horror content on Roblox
These games can be accessed and played by any user on Roblox who does not have the restricted mode setting in place.
- Adult content is easily accessible
- Weapons are used in many games
- Direct (private) messaging with any other player is very easy
- Most games want you to buy stuff
Roblox, like many online games, has its own currency called Robux.
- Players chat in another language!
We probably all know "lol" but when playing Roblox the chat stream is hectic with shorthand:
nvm...gtg...idk...ikr...jk...qwq
Strategies for minimising risk
If you've read this far, you're now aware that Roblox is littered with content that you might not want your child being exposed to.
There are parental controls within the settings that are able to minimise risk and remove access to much of this content. Minimising risk does not eliminate risk, therefore supervision and communication are still vital.
Other helpful links
https://www.esafety.gov.au/parents/big-issues
https://www.esafety.gov.au/parents/big-issues/gaming
https://www.education.act.gov.au/support-for-our-students/being-safe-online