Kids, teens, and many adults have become avid Roblox users especially in the past couple of years. Although it’s been around since 2006, it’s only been a household name recently. It has skyrocketed to become one of the top entertainment and video gaming platforms for kids and teens.
Developed with kids and teens in mind, there are useful parental controls on Roblox. While these parental controls may not be enough especially for the more tech-savvy kids, these are a great first step for parents to ensure a kid’s safety on the platform. It is, therefore, important parents take time to learn about these parental controls then add their own security and safety measures.
What Is Roblox?
Contrary to what many people think, Roblox is not a game but an online entertainment platform where users can play as well as create Roblox games. One of the many things that make Roblox appealing is that the games are created by the users. To date, Roblox users are reported to have published tens of millions of games on the platform.
Roblox has made it possible for just about anyone to breathe life into their game ideas. The platform provides a suite of game development tools that even kids can learn to use. Moreover, Roblox makes it possible for developers to scale and turn their games into online multiplayer games. The biggest bonus is that the game developers, yes even kids and teens, can monetize their creations.
The Roblox app or the platform itself is free to download. The games, however, typically offer in-game purchases. This is one of the things that parents might want to restrict. Roblox is a social platform as well since the players can leave comments or converse with other players in a game. They can also chat with their friends on Roblox. This is t another aspect parents may want to closely monitor along with the types of games their kids will play.
Is Roblox A Safe Gaming Platform?
Is Roblox safe for kids? – this is most likely every parent’s first question. It is relatively safe for an online entertainment platform. Also, since it is created with kids and teens in mind, the developers have put some very useful parental controls in place. It also has rules and human and digital moderators to keep things in check.
Many Roblox games are multiplayer and are social experiences in themselves. While this can have its benefits in developing a kid’s digital socializing habits, it does pose some threats. Multiplayer games could easily lead to some bad interactions such as cyberbullying and exposure to crude language. Also, there’s a myriad of games available on Roblox, some of them may be inappropriate for kids. There are some remedies to this though, including parental restrictions and parental guidance.
Roblox may not be free of threats and dangers, but it is relatively safer than most platforms of its kind. Learning how to put parental controls on Roblox will also go a long way in making it safer for your kids.
Roblox Parental Controls
Does Roblox have parental controls? Well, not only does Roblox have them, but their parental controls are extensive compared to other gaming or social platforms.
First of all, if you have younger kids who wish to be on Roblox, it’s best you register them yourselves. Entering their birth date already puts into place some default security and privacy settings. For instance, players aged 13 and up can see and say more words and phrases than younger players. They can also share social media usernames and YouTube channel links. Inappropriate chats and sharing of personal information like phone numbers and addresses are blocked regardless of the user’s age.
Parents can restrict the games that their kids can play. They can also restrict social aspects such as in-game and in-app chats. This can be done by enabling Account Restrictions. Take note that turning this feature on will lock an account’s Contact Settings.
Enable Account Restrictions On a Computer
- Login to Roblox.
- Click the Gear icon on the upper-right corner.
- Choose Setting.
- Select Parental Controls.
- In the Account Restrictions section, press the toggle button to turn the feature on.
- The message Account Restrictions is currently enabled will be displayed.
Enable Account Restrictions On a Mobile Device
- Open the app for the Roblox login.
- Tap on the More button at the lower-right corner.
- Select Settings in the pop-up menu.
- Select Parental Controls in the menu on the left-hand side of the screen.
- Toggle on the Account Restrictions button.
- The message Account Restrictions is currently enabled will be displayed.
In-Game Blocking
Take note that the steps may vary depending on the device.
- Find the user in the leaderboard (if the leaderboard is not visible on the game screen, tap on your username to open it).
- Click on the player’s name then select Block Player.
Website or Mobile App Blocking
- Visit the player’s profile.
- Click the three dots in the upper right corner.
- Select Block Player.
In-Game Reporting
- Click on the Menu button (burger icon).
- Click the Flag icon next to a player’s name or click the Report tab at the top of the menu.
- Complete the form.
Website or Mobile App Reporting
- Tap on the Report Abuse link (this is usually found at the bottom of the description or under the “…” menu.
- Complete the form.
Add PIN
To ensure your kids can’t change the restrictions you’ve set. How do I add a PIN?
- Log into Roblox.
- Go to Account Settings.
- Browser – find the Gear icon located at the upper-right corner of the site.
Mobile Apps – find the three dots icon for More.
- Select the Parental Controls tab.
- Toggle button to turn PIN on.
- Create and confirm your new PIN.
Keeping Kids Safe While Playing On Roblox
Kids can easily interact with other Roblox players and play games of their choice. To ensure their safety, enable the parental controls mentioned above and any other measures you wish to put in place. For instance, you might want to use a third-party parental control app like Highster Mobile as an additional monitoring tool and security measure.
With Highster Mobile, you can oversee their phone and/or tablet activities including apps installed, messages, media stored, contacts, and more. This is the ultimate monitoring app needed to ensure your child’s safety online and within applications.