A MUM has warned parents of online predators after her young son was targeted by a pervert on Roblox who sent him a link to porn site.
The mum felt “physically sick” after a “predator” messaged her eight-year-old boy using the game’s chat function while he was playing on his dad’s iPad.
The user asked the unassuming youngster to google something for him.
He was sent a link which took the boy through to a X-rated website, leaving his horrified mum wishing she could “erase it from his memory”.
The mum, from Edinburgh, told The Daily Record: “He was only eight at the time. I felt physically sick when I found out.
“It was not easy to deal with. I just wanted to erase it from his memory.”
She has now called on parents to ban the game at home all together – or at least ensure all web surfing restrictions are in place on their devices.
Roblox allows players to create small multiplayer games and other experiences – and is heavily marketed a kid-friendly game.
It is rated as suitable for those aged seven and up in Europe by PEGI, but that doesn’t take into account all of the different games on the service.
These range from innocent games such as Pizza Factory or Jelly Mining simulator to role-playing servers where users can pretend to be animals, solve murder mysteries and more.
Parents can limit Roblox to just show a “curated” selection of games which are vetted as suitable for those under 13 – but this is not enabled by default.
The site was previously a haven for more sinister role-playing, including people pretending to be Nazis or even the Ku Klux Klan.
Police Scotland issued a warning to parents about certain Roblox games, claiming predators can try to bypass the in-built moderation system to speak to kids.
A Facebook post by the force reads: “Anyone asking for your child’s personal information or to talk privately should be blocked and reported.”
A Roblox spokesperson said: “While we don’t yet know the facts in this case, we understand how distressing incidents like this can be, and we work hard to prevent them from happening.
“We have stringent safety systems and a team of thousands of moderators who enforce a strict set of community standards on Roblox, including zero tolerance for sexual content of any kind.
“The safety of users on Roblox is at the core of everything we do, and we have a number of dedicated features designed to keep kids safe while playing Roblox.
“We filter all text chat on the platform to block inappropriate content or personal information and we offer parental controls and features such as ‘Account Restrictions,’ so parents and caregivers have the option to limit chat to a curated list of contacts or turn chat off altogether.
“Users can also easily mute or block players that they come across in games and report inappropriate content or behaviour using our Report Abuse system.”