"Roblox, a gaming app used by nearly half of the entire U.S. population of under-16s, has rolled out a new mandatory safety feature to put a stop to children communicating with adults on the platform. Starting on January 7, players in the U.S. were required to submit to facial age estimation via the app to access the chat feature, although age verification remains optional to play the games themselves."
"Users in the U.K., Australia, New Zealand, and the Netherlands are already required to complete an age check to chat with other users, but the requirement will now roll out to the U.S. and beyond. The verification is being processed by a third-party vendor, Persona. Once the age check is processed, Roblox says it will delete any images or videos of users. If the age-check process incorrectly estimates a user's age, the decision can be appealed and the child's age verified through alternative methods."
"Once users complete the age check, they are assigned to one of six age groups (under 9, 9-12, 13-15, 16-17, 18-20, and 21+). Users can only communicate with players directly above and below their own age group. For example, a 9-year-old cannot chat with users older than 15, and a 16-year-old can only chat with those ages 13 to 20. The feature is designed to prevent children younger than 16 from communicating with adults. About 42% of Roblox users are younger than 13."
Roblox implemented a mandatory facial age-estimation requirement for U.S. users to access chat, while gameplay remains available without verification. The age check is already required in the U.K., Australia, New Zealand, and the Netherlands and will expand beyond the U.S. A third-party vendor, Persona, processes the verification and Roblox states images or videos will be deleted after processing. Incorrect estimates can be appealed and verified through alternative methods; users 13 or older may opt for ID-based checks. Verified users are placed into six age groups and can only message adjacent age groups to block under-16s from adult contact. About 42% of users are under 13.
Read at Fast Company
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]