MIAMI — A South Florida mother is the latest parent to sue a pair of app giants she says promise safety for their child users.
The lawsuit accuses Roblox and Discord of enabling a man to seduce her 11-year-old daughter online and then rape her.
On the Roblox platform, chats and interaction are the name of the game.
And it’s that interaction that a growing number of parents say has caused their kids unending harm.
“Roblox gives pedophiles a platform to look like a 12-year-old girl,” attorney Stanley Gipe told Local 10 News.
Gipe represents a Miami-Dade mother whose daughter used Roblox and Discord, where she met and messaged a predator who groomed her and when he met her, raped her.
Roblox markets itself as the number one gaming site for kids. Discord says it’s great for chilling with friends.
The adult who used those platforms to “connect” with the young girl is now serving 60 years in prison.
“This pedophile is the one who ended up creating a strong bond with this girl and it changed her life forever,” Gipe said.
Gipe said the lawsuit claims Roblox and Discord were designed negligently, give child users inadequate warnings, and give parents a false sense of security with positive statements about safety.
“So what happens is pedophiles find this to be a fertile hunting ground and they will come on here all day long,” Gipe said.
Roblox and Discord now face dozens of lawsuits alleging child exploitation and grooming.
Earlier this month, Roblox announced it’s now using facial age estimation technology to verify the ages of users 13 and older.
Too little, too late, Gipe said.
“Roblox may have made changes,” he said. “They may have done something to prevent harm in the future. It doesn’t excuse all the harm that’s been done in the past.”
In May, Florida’s attorney general launched an investigation into Roblox. State agents say they will determine whether the platform is exposing Florida kids to harmful content and “bad actors.”
Read the lawsuit (Warning: Contains graphic images, descriptions):
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