Nebraska Sues Roblox Over Allegations of Child Exploitation and Deceptive Practices

LINCOLN, NE – Nebraska Attorney General Mike Hilgers announced a lawsuit Wednesday against Roblox Corporation, alleging the company knowingly created and maintains an online environment that exposes children to sexual predators, violent content, and illegal activity while misleading parents about the platform’s safety. This action adds to a growing wave of legal challenges against the popular gaming platform, with at least six other states filing similar complaints.

Lawsuit Details and Allegations

The lawsuit asserts that Roblox, despite being aware of widespread exploitation on its platform, markets itself as a safe space for children while failing to implement adequate safeguards. According to the complaint, Roblox has become a widely used platform for children, with tens of millions of daily users, many under the age of 13. Specifically, the lawsuit alleges the company allows:

• Direct contact between minors and adult predators through private messaging, voice chat, and user-generated “experiences.”
• Accessibility to sexually explicit, violent, and age-inappropriate content, even for young children.
• Simulated criminal activity, including graphic depictions of violence.
• Inadequate and easily bypassed parental controls.

Attorney General Hilgers stated that Roblox prioritized profit over safety, allowing harmful content and predatory behavior to proliferate. The lawsuit highlights discrepancies between Roblox’s public statements and the reality of safety measures on the platform. The Nebraska Attorney General’s Office asserts Roblox has consistently refused to implement reasonable safety precautions.

Growing National Concerns

Nebraska joins Louisiana, Kentucky, Texas, Florida, Iowa, and Tennessee in filing lawsuits against Roblox regarding child safety. Los Angeles County has similarly filed a similar suit. These complaints share common accusations of the platform enabling predators and failing to protect children from inappropriate content. NBC News reports that lawsuits allege sexual predators have “repeatedly used Roblox to groom and eventually abduct and sexually assault children.”

Roblox, which reports over 151 million daily active users, describes itself as “the largest dedicated gaming platform for users aged 13 and under.”

Roblox’s Response

Matt Kaufman, Roblox’s chief safety officer, responded to the Nebraska lawsuit, stating the platform “is built with safety at its core, and we strengthen our protections every day.” Kaufman told NBC News that Roblox prohibits image and video sharing between users, uses filters to prevent sharing personal information, and enforces age-based settings for chat. The company also highlights its collaboration with law enforcement and the recent implementation of facial age checks via Persona for chat access.

Roblox also introduced parental controls in late 2024, allowing parents to block games or users, manage chat settings, and set screen time and spending limits. However, the lawsuit argues that even with these controls, parents lack sufficient visibility into their children’s interactions, leaving them vulnerable to grooming and predation.

Ongoing Litigation and Investigations

In addition to the state lawsuits, more than 130 individual lawsuits have been consolidated into multidistrict litigation in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. These cases involve allegations of grooming, sexual assault, and even suicide linked to interactions on the Roblox platform. The Nebraska Examiner reports that dozens of people in the U.S. Have been arrested on charges related to exploiting children through the platform.

Oklahoma and South Carolina have also initiated investigations into Roblox, potentially leading to further legal action. Over 800 parents have sent an open letter urging Roblox and Discord to refrain from forcing lawsuits into private arbitration, advocating for open court proceedings to address these issues publicly.

Looking Ahead

The lawsuits against Roblox raise critical questions about the responsibility of online platforms to protect children. The outcomes of these legal battles could significantly impact the future of online safety regulations and the standards to which platforms are held accountable. The cases, none of which have gone to trial as of March 5, 2026, have the potential to reshape the immunity platforms currently enjoy under Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act of 1996.