Los Angeles County sues Roblox over inadequate child safety protections
Los Angeles County sued Roblox, alleging the gaming platform fails to adequately protect children from sexual content, exploitation, and online predators through insufficient moderation and ineffective age-verification systems. The lawsuit claims children in the county have been repeatedly exposed to grooming and sexually explicit material on the platform despite Roblox's marketing it as safe for minors.
What happened
Los Angeles County filed a lawsuit against Roblox on February 19, 2026, alleging the platform exposes children to sexual content, exploitation, and online predators.
The county alleged that Roblox does not carry out adequate moderation and its age-verification systems are not fit for purpose, despite marketing the platform as a safe space for children.
Reported impact
According to the lawsuit, children in Los Angeles County have been repeatedly exposed to sexually explicit content, exploitation, and grooming on Roblox.
The county alleged that Roblox has about 144 million active users daily, with more than 40% under 13 years old.
Index analysis
A 2024 report by Hindenburg Research described Roblox as an 'X-rated pedophile hellscape' that exposed children to grooming and pornography.
Roblox is facing similar lawsuits over children's safety protections in Georgia, Louisiana, Texas, Florida, and Kentucky.
Governance controls
Roblox stated it has advanced safeguards that monitor the platform for harmful content and communications, and that users cannot send or receive images via chat.
The company has beefed up safety protocols over the past year, including requiring all users to verify their age with facial estimation technology.
Classification
Sources and evidence
This record was researched and written by the Index, based on the following original reporting.