Georgia Investigates Roblox Over Child Safety Concerns

Probe into popular online platform sparks broader debate over Big Tech's responsibility to protect minors

Published on Feb. 23, 2026

The Georgia Attorney General has launched an investigation into the online platform Roblox to determine if the company is violating state consumer protection laws and placing children at risk. The probe follows several troubling incidents involving minors on the platform, including cases of child abuse and sexual exploitation. Experts say the core risks on Roblox are not new, but they are evolving as the platform combines gaming and social interaction, blurring the line between play and persuasion. The investigation is part of a larger national reckoning over how technology companies design products for children and their responsibility to keep kids safe online.

Why it matters

The Roblox investigation in Georgia reflects a broader debate over child safety in the digital age. As immersive technologies continue to expand, the challenges around monitoring, moderation, and accountability will only grow more complex. Policymakers across the country are grappling with how to regulate child-facing platforms and hold tech companies responsible for harm caused by user-generated content. The outcome of cases like this could shape the digital landscape for millions of children for years to come.

The details

The Georgia Attorney General's investigation into Roblox was prompted by several disturbing incidents involving minors on the platform. In one case, Georgia State Patrol troopers recovered two missing girls who had communicated with a 19-year-old man on Roblox. In another, an adult posing as a child used Roblox's chat function to contact a 12-year-old boy and coerce him into sending explicit photos. Experts say the core risks on Roblox, like encountering strangers and being exposed to harmful interactions, are not new, but they are evolving as the platform combines gaming and social features. While Roblox offers parental control settings, there is often a gap between the existence of safety tools and their real-world effectiveness, as parents may not fully understand how to configure them and kids may not be aware of them.

  • Earlier this year, Georgia State Patrol troopers recovered two girls who had gone missing from their Florida home after communicating with a 19-year-old man on Roblox.
  • In a separate 2023 case, authorities said an adult posing as a child used Roblox's chat function to contact a 12-year-old boy and later coerced him into sending explicit photos.

The players

Chris Carr

The Georgia Attorney General who has launched an investigation into Roblox to determine if the company is violating state consumer protection laws and placing children at risk.

Munmun De Choudhury

A professor at the Georgia Institute of Technology who studies computational social science and the effects of digital platforms on personal and societal well-being.

Roblox

The sprawling online platform where users build, play, and chat inside millions of user-generated worlds, which has become a digital playground for tens of millions of kids and teens.

Got photos? Submit your photos here. ›

What they’re saying

“One of the main safety risks is kids encountering strangers — sometimes adults posing as children — and being exposed to unsafe or harmful interactions that can lead to grooming.”

— Munmun De Choudhury, Professor (CBS News Atlanta)

“What makes Roblox different is that it is a space specifically popular with kids and teens. It's not just about gaming. It's about socializing.”

— Munmun De Choudhury, Professor (CBS News Atlanta)

“Parents may not fully understand how to configure those tools. Kids may not be aware of them. And sometimes parental controls alone are not sufficient.”

— Munmun De Choudhury, Professor (CBS News Atlanta)

What’s next

As of February 2026, at least six state attorneys general have launched investigations or taken legal action against Roblox over concerns about child safety and exploitation, with several states already filing lawsuits.

The takeaway

The Roblox investigation in Georgia is part of a larger national reckoning over how technology companies design products for children and their responsibility to keep kids safe online. As immersive technologies continue to expand, the challenges around monitoring, moderation, and accountability will only grow more complex, and policymakers across the country will need to find solutions to protect children in the digital age.