We don’t always consider petitions headline news, but a recent petition aimed in the direction of Roblox is unique not just for who started it but for the circumstances that surround its start – specifically, the game’s demonstrated inability to deal with predators, which has now resulted in legal threats for a content creator.
A YouTuber by the name of Schlep has apparently been posting videos of his efforts to entrap alleged sexual predators in Roblox for several months; in them, he poses as a minor in what amounts to a digital sting operation. Schlep’s efforts have nailed six alleged creepers, according to his upload history.
However, Roblox Corp has taken a dim view of these efforts. Characterizing them as “digital vigilantism,” the company argued in a post last week that such actions delay law enforcement efforts and “may leave bad actors on the platform longer simply to create more sensationalized social media content.”
The whole matter came to a head when Roblox Corp reportedly issued a cease and desist order to Schlep, closed the accounts related to his stings, and threatened to sue him for breaching Roblox’s TOS and violating the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act.
“This is pretty heartbreaking to me because I’ve been playing Roblox since I was a little kid. I love this platform; I still do,” says Schlep in the video. “I love so much about this site, and that’s why I’m so critical of it because I want to see it do better.”
Roblox nevertheless defended the removal of digital vigilantes like Schlep, arguing that the platform’s in-game reporting tools are the best way to remove threats and that these players “have taken actions that are both unacceptable and create an unsafe environment for users.”
However, players immediately pushed back on the suggestion that existing reporting tools are sufficient; the current user context box on Twitter links to videos that argue these measures offer no protection at all, while the entire episode has spawned a Change.org petition started by a 14 year-old who calls for Roblox Corp CEO David Baszucki to be removed.
“Roblox is supposed to be a safe and creative space for children. But under the leadership of [Baszucki], that safety has been repeatedly compromised. Instead of prioritizing the protection of young users, Roblox Corporation continues to allow harmful and exploitative behavior to thrive on its platform — with little accountability or transparency. […] This is not just about poor leadership. This is about child safety.”
The petition gained almost immediate traction, earning over 12,000 signatures in just two days according to a press release from Change.org, and is currently nearing 50K signatures at the time of this writing from both parents and fans of Roblox alike.
Parallel to all of this drama is a second petition started by Congressman Ro Khanna (D, California) that calls on Roblox to provide more support to parents and strengthen law enforcement protocols to bring predators to justice. A TikTok video posted by Khanna urges people to bring the petition to one million signatures by Friday. What’s not made clear is what happens after the fact.
“Roblox is at a crossroads,” reads part of the petition. “We’re not going to stand by while kids are exploited online, and powerful tech companies can do more to stop it.”
It’s been a long road, friends.
