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Annika Peterson | News | February
As of January 2026, Roblox has rolled out their new update, setting restrictions on the game’s chat system that depend on the users estimated age group. Amidst the growing concern about child safety and the inappropriate behavior of some users on the platform, Roblox has released a new age check update.
“Age check is a process designed to evaluate a user’s age,” Roblox said. “This creates a more customized and safer experience on Roblox and [gives players] access to age-appropriate content and features.”
In regard to how Roblox has decided to determine a user’s age, they have mentioned two methods of authentification, both of which use AI. Users need to take photos of their face and upload it to this AI to get their estimated age group.
“We estimate your age by analyzing a facial image and video of your face and examining your facial features,” Roblox said. “If you believe your age was incorrectly estimated as under 13, you can verify your birthday using an ID.”
In addition to the chat update, Roblox has also released what they call “Trusted Connections,” a tool used to chat with specific users in any age range. These trusted connections require evidence that the users know each other in real life, and are the only official way to connect with those of other age ranges.
“Trusted Connections [are] available to all eligible users aged 13 and older, Roblox said. “[They] provide a unique environment for users to interact with self-identified trusted individuals.”
Although this update has been a large change to the platform, Roblox has implied that it will not stop here. Roblox plans to lead the way in terms of online safety, hoping that other platforms will follow in their footsteps.
“This implementation is our next step toward what we believe will be the gold standard for communication safety,” Roblox said.
A chart displaying Roblox's new established age groups and what other age groups they can chat with.
Chart taken from Roblox Support website.
While Roblox believes this update is for the best, some long-time players have raised concern about the impact it will have on the various games that the platform hosts. Users note that certain game genres that heavily rely on the Roblox chat may not be able to survive with the new limitations.
“Roleplay games, team-based games, games about trading, and so many more are going to die over time because the chat is no longer usable,” an anonymous Reddit user said. “Even if you decide to submit a government ID or scan your face, you are still going to be limited to select players.”
Along with the arguments against this new chat update, some players have experienced issues with the age sorting mechanism. Users who do not look like their actual age may have issues with this system, and Roblox requires ID verification to redo a user’s age check.
“My 15-year-old friend got put into the 9-12 category and my 17-year-old friend got put into the 12-15 category,” DylanIsMayor, a Roblox YouTuber, said in a video posted about the new Roblox chat update.
Screenshot of the Ebay page selling age verified Roblox accounts, the sellers’ usernames have been censored.
Screenshot taken by Annika Peterson.
Others have experienced concern with the methods used by the platform for age verification. Some disagree with the way Roblox has been pushing their verification on the platform, greeting users with a message asking to verify their age on the home page regardless of the user’s preset age.
“My issue is that thousands, if not millions of children are being promoted to provide the face scan without parental consent within the app,” an anonymous Reddit user said.
Among these concerns, a new market for Roblox accounts has begun to spring up across multiple resale platforms like Ebay. These Roblox accounts violate Roblox’s terms of service, and pose an issue of users accessing age groups outside of their own.
“People are already selling age verified Roblox accounts,” Kreekcraft, a famous Roblox YouTuber, posted on X shortly after the Roblox update was released.
While there are many differing opinions on Roblox’s new chat update, both sides have shown a desire to establish safe environments for children. Whether it be through this new chat update or children being accompanied by trusted adults, either in real life or through trusted connections, effort is being put in by all parties to make Roblox a safer place.
“No matter what, nothing is more predator proof than attentive adults around the kids,” an anonymous Reddit user said.
Annika Peterson, News Editor
Annika Peterson is the editor of the News section for The Courier. This is her second year of writing for The Courier, and her first year as an editor.
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