US Senate Launches Investigation Into Roblox Over Child Safety and Revenue Metrics

The US Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime and Counterterrorism has officially launched an investigation into Roblox, accusing the popular game creation platform of prioritizing financial revenue and engagement metrics over the safety and well-being of young users. In a formal letter addressed to Roblox CEO David Baszucki, Republican Senator Josh Hawley and Democratic Senator Richard J. Durbin stated that the platform's alleged criminal activity warrants deep congressional scrutiny.

The senators criticized the platform's public image, noting that while the company promotes itself as a secure digital playground for children starting at five years old, public records raise serious safety concerns. Pointing to past arrests involving grooming, sexual abuse, kidnapping, rape, and murder linked to contacts made via the platform, the lawmakers highlighted alarming statistics. According to the letter, Roblox reported 65,381 suspected instances of child sexual exploitation to the US National Center for Missing & Exploited Children in 2025 alone, representing more than double the figures from the previous year.

The subcommittee has issued a broad set of demands, requesting nearly 30 types of documents, data points, and interrogatories. The company has been ordered to hand over these key records by August 31, 2026. Among the requested information are details regarding user demographics, daily and weekly hours spent by various age brackets, metrics on parental oversight enablement, automated versus human-reviewed moderation reports across 2023 through 2025, and financial expenditures dedicated to trust and safety operations from 2018 onward. The committee also requested internal documents concerning collaborations with Sesame Workshop, the NFL, and FIFA, alongside financial exposure assessments related to potential changes like barring users under 13 from purchasing Robux.

This federal inquiry follows a string of international and domestic pressures faced by the platform. Turkey banned Roblox in August 2024 over child safety worries, and Louisiana's attorney general subsequently branded the platform dangerous. Furthermore, the Australian government declared in April that platforms like Roblox risk becoming onramps to abuse, and several US states alongside Los Angeles County have filed lawsuits regarding child endangerment.

In response to the mounting scrutiny, Roblox chief safety officer Matt Kaufman issued a statement to the press emphasizing that the platform is built on a foundation of safety. Kaufman asserted that the company does not compromise on that commitment and looks forward to sharing the facts regarding its child protection efforts. In recent months, Roblox has rolled out facial age estimation technology, restricted direct messaging for players under the age of 13, and introduced updated content tagging systems.