Roblox mandates age verification for chat access

Roblox has rolled out mandatory facial age verification for users to access chats on its platform. As of January 31, the company reported that 45% of its daily active users had undergone these age checks. This rollout follows legal pressure and lawsuits over child safety from the attorneys general—the chief state-level legal officials—of Texas, Kentucky, and Louisiana. These lawsuits were filed in response to reports that the platform was exposing young users to “dangerous risks, such as grooming and explicit content”.

To complete the verification, users must allow camera access within the Roblox app for facial verification. This process is handled by Persona, a third-party identity verification vendor. According to Roblox, Persona deletes the collected images and videos after completing the verification process. Once verified, users can access age-based chats, which restrict communication to similar age groups. The platform divides users into six categories ranging from under 9 to 21 plus, allowing users to only chat with those in their own group or the cohorts directly adjacent to them. To prevent users from bypassing these checks, Roblox runs background systems to monitor account activity. On Friday, Eliza Jacobs, the senior director of product policy, explained that the platform uses keystroke analysis and emoji usage patterns to verify age accuracy. Jacobs noted, “The way adults type is different from the way kids type.” If the system detects inconsistent activity, Roblox will introduce additional checks.

Beyond safety, the age-checked data has revealed a younger user base than users had self-reported. Of the 45% of daily active users who have completed the verification, Roblox reported that 35% are under 13, 38% are between the ages of 13 and 17, and 27% are over 18. However, the data also highlights a significant commercial opportunity. Roblox CEO and co-founder David Baszucki stated that the company has identified a larger growth opportunity in the 18-plus demographic than previously assumed. Baszucki estimated that the 18 and over cohort is growing at over 50% and monetizes 40% higher than younger cohorts. In response, the company is optimizing its platform to facilitate the growth of high-revenue genres popular with older users, such as shooters, role-playing games, sports, and racing.

Why it matters

Roblox is balancing mandatory age verification to mitigate legal and safety risks with the strategic use of that data to identify and monetize its growing 18-plus user demographic.