May 20 - Two children's advocacy organizations on Wednesday asked the U.S. Federal Trade Commission to open an investigation into Roblox, the online gaming platform, saying in a formal letter that certain design elements and marketing tactics amount to "unfair and deceptive" practices.
The groups, Fairplay and the National Center on Sexual Exploitation, requested that the FTC determine whether Roblox has breached Section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act, which bars unfair or deceptive acts or practices affecting commerce. In their letter, the organizations contend that the company misleads the public about how safe the platform is for young users and exerts undue pressure on children to purchase special in-game privileges.
Their petition adds to growing legal and regulatory attention on the company. Roblox is the subject of more than 140 lawsuits filed in U.S. federal court alleging that the platform knowingly enabled child sexual exploitation. Those lawsuits assert that Roblox was designed and marketed to minors in a way that permitted predators to identify, target and contact young users.
Roblox's response, conveyed through a company spokesperson, rejected the assertions in the advocacy groups' letter. The company said it "strongly disputes" the claims and noted platform safeguards, including an age verification requirement for U.S. users who wish to use chat functions and restrictions that limit minors' ability to communicate only with other users close to their age.
An FTC spokesperson declined to comment on the request.
The letter from Fairplay and the National Center on Sexual Exploitation frames its appeal as a consumer-protection matter under federal law, focusing on alleged deceptive representations of safety and alleged monetization practices that the groups say put financial pressure on young players. Outside of the legal claims and the advocacy groups' petition, the company points to built-in tools to restrict interactions and to its public statements regarding user safety.
Given the combination of litigation and the new FTC petition, questions remain about how regulators might evaluate claims that platform design and marketing methods directed at minors constitute unfair or deceptive practices under Section 5. For now, the FTC has not indicated any response to the letter.