Turkey Bans Roblox for Alleged Child Exploitation

The Turkish Information and Communication Technologies Authority (BTK) bans Roblox over child exploitation concerns. 

An official from the BTK mentioned 4 reasons for the ban (via PC Gamer). The first is sexual exploitation concerns, as there is allegedly content on Roblox that exploits children, then reports of pedophilia at virtual parties, which are incentivized by the Robux currency:

Finally, there's Roblox's supposed "inability to effectively monitor and regulate inappropriate content." According to the legal body, the game's "oversight mechanisms" were "insufficient."

Roblox has issued a statement, saying it is working with local authorities trying to resolve the situation. 

Access to Roblox was cut 5 days after Turkey blocked Instagram in the country, and not everyone in the government is supportive of the decision. As PC Gamer noted, Ekrem İmamoğlu, the Mayor of Istanbul, said that "after Instagram, it is incomprehensible that access has also been banned to Roblox, an online gaming platform with over 15 million users where users can develop games. Those who make these decisions are minds that are unaware of the new world, economy and technology."

Roblox has been hit with exploitation accusations for years now, mostly concerning child labor. The studio head Stefano Corazza, however, believes the game gives children opportunities to earn money and get experience in development.

Still, a recent report claims the platform saw over 13,000 child exploitation incidents in 2023.

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