A disturbing investigation into popular gaming platform Roblox has exposed a dangerous underworld where children face virtual sexual assault and predatory behaviour, raising urgent questions about why it's excluded from Australia's upcoming social media ban for under-16s.
The Chilling Undercover Investigation
Senior correspondent Sarah Martin conducted a troubling experiment by posing as an eight-year-old girl on Roblox. Her experience revealed a platform where children are routinely exposed to inappropriate content, violent scenarios, and grooming by predators.
Martin documented her week on the platform in harrowing detail, describing being sexually assaulted and subjected to other degrading virtual actions while controlling her child avatar. The investigation highlights how the platform's interactive nature enables harmful behaviour that goes far beyond typical gaming risks.
The Regulatory Gap
In just one month, the Albanese government's under-16s social media ban will come into effect, but Roblox remains excluded from this protection despite clear evidence of risks to children.
Experts and MPs are now demanding that Roblox should be included in the social media ban, arguing that the platform functions as a social network where predators can easily access and groom children. The gaming environment, while marketed as family-friendly, contains user-generated content that frequently crosses into inappropriate and dangerous territory.
Growing Pressure for Action
The investigation has sparked renewed calls for tighter regulation of gaming platforms that double as social spaces for children. With the social media ban implementation looming, pressure is mounting on authorities to recognise that threats to child safety extend beyond traditional social media apps.
Parents and child protection advocates are being urged to understand the full scope of risks present on platforms like Roblox, where the line between gaming and social interaction becomes dangerously blurred, creating what some describe as an 'X-rated paedophile hellscape' accessible to young children.
