Roblox CEO David Baszucki responds to criticism of online security, saying it is an industry-wide problem.
Florida authorities recently arrested a man accused of soliciting a child through the popular gaming platform Roblox.
The arrest was announced on November 7 by the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office (FCSO).
The suspect, Brandon Rodriguez-Silva, 20, of San Jose, California, has been charged with transmitting material harmful to minors via an electronic device and soliciting a child to engage in unlawful sexual conduct using a computer service or device.
Authorities say Rodriguez-Silva allegedly got the Florida child involved in Roblox and encouraged them to go to the messaging app Discord before eventually exchanging cell phone numbers.
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The Flagler County Sheriff’s Office said a California man was arrested after allegedly soliciting a Florida child through the popular gaming platform Roblox. (Santa Clara County Department of Correction; Gabby Jones/Bloomberg via Getty Images/Getty Images)
“[T]he suspects…told the victim that he was 18 years old and lived in California and began asking for nude photos,” the news release said.
“The messages between the suspect and the child contained numerous sexually explicit texts and photos, but no nudity.”
The victim’s parent eventually got wind of the conversations and reported them to authorities.
“Thankfully, this parent acted as sheriff in their home by viewing their child’s messages and immediately contacting law enforcement after discovering a stranger was attempting to take advantage of their child,” Sheriff Rick Staly said in a statement.
The FCSO said the arrest was more than two years in the making.
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Investigators said the suspect allegedly encouraged the child to continue contact via Discord after meeting on Roblox. (Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images/Getty Images)
“The investigation began in June 2023 when officers responded to a Palm Coast residence regarding a suspicious incident reported by a concerned parent,” the news release said.
“Upon arrival, officers spoke with the parent, who stated he discovered an inappropriate and sexually explicit conversation on his child’s iPad between his child and an unknown male.”
Roblox, which allows users to create, share and play games, is especially popular among children and teens.
Staly emphasized that the case shows “why it is incredibly important for parents to be aware of the dangers of the Internet and monitor their children’s online activities.”
“These online platforms provide an opportunity for predators to contact and groom unsuspecting children in a way that allows exploitation to occur,” the sheriff said.
Staly said parents should remain alert to online risks and regularly monitor their children’s digital communications. (Gabby Jones/Bloomberg via Getty Images/Getty Images)
Rodriguez-Silva is being held at the Elmwood Correctional Facility in Milpitas, California. He will be extradited to Flagler County.
“Our policy is purposefully stricter than many other platforms,” the official said. “We prohibit the sharing of images and videos in chat, use filters designed to block the exchange of personal information, and our trained teams and automated tools continuously monitor communications to detect and remove harmful content.”
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“This year alone, we have introduced more than 145 security measures on the platform, and in an industry first, we recently announced that we will soon implement age estimation for all users accessing chat features, which will further strengthen security protections on Roblox,” the spokesperson added.
