DeKalb family sues Roblox, Discord after child allegedly sent explicit photos to predator

DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. - A DeKalb County family is suing the gaming platform Roblox and the chat app Discord after their now 14-year-old son was allegedly groomed by a predator who convinced him to send sexually explicit photos, according to the family’s attorney.

DeKalb family sues Roblox, Discord

What we know:

The lawsuit, filed in California federal court, where both companies are headquartered, was brought on behalf of the boy’s mother, identified as Jane Doe, with her son listed as John Doe.

The mother is seeking a jury trial and unspecified financial damages, claiming her son has suffered from severe mental health issues, anxiety, trust difficulties, and a loss of safety and innocence following the alleged grooming and exploitation.

Child groomed on Roblox, lawsuit alleges

The backstory:

The case stems from incidents that occurred two years ago when the boy was 12 years old. According to the lawsuit, he was an avid Roblox user, and his mother trusted the platform’s safety features enough to allow him to play and chat freely.

In 2023, the boy allegedly began communicating with a predator posing as another child through Roblox’s chat function. The lawsuit claims the man later moved their conversations to Discord, where he sent graphic messages and coerced the child into sending explicit photos and videos. The mother was unaware this was happening, according to court filings.

"Capitalist greed outweighs humanity," lawyer says

What they're saying:

Their attorney says the child was 12 years old in 2023 when he began engaging in graphic conversations with Roblox users. Those chats eventually moved to Discord.

"This experience has been life-altering, not just for the child but for his mom, for the whole family," said attorney Sara Beller with the Dulman Law Group.

The family declined to speak on camera to protect their son’s identity.

"On discord, those perpetrators sent the child graphic messages and manipulated him into sending sexually explicit images and videos of himself," the attorney said.

The family alleges the platforms allowed adults to pose as minors and that both companies failed to prevent the abuse, which they say contributed to ongoing mental health struggles.

"The child’s mother actually found the child kind of hiding and hovering in a closet and didn’t know why he had the tablet and she actually took the tablet to figure out what was wrong," the attorney said. That is when she allegedly made the discovery.

"This case against Roblox is a terrifying reminder of the world we live in where capitalist greed far outweighs humanity," said Matthew Dolman, principal of Dolman Law Group, which represents the family. "There have never been sufficient safety measures and protocols in place, putting our youngest and most vulnerable communities into unimaginable harm’s way every second of the day. Without forcing systemic change, Roblox will continue to operate anarchically."

This case adds to several similar lawsuits already filed against both companies.

"We’re really trying to force systemic change on roblox and discord really to make sure that this doesn’t happen to anyone in the future," the attorney said.

Discord and Roblox on safety

The other side:

Discord declined to comment on pending litigation but provided a statement emphasizing its safety measures.

"Discord is deeply committed to safety and we require all users to be at least 13 to use our platform. We use a combination of advanced technology and trained safety teams to proactively find and remove content that violates our policies. We maintain strong systems to prevent the spread of sexual exploitation and grooming on our platform and also work with other technology companies and safety organizations to improve online safety across the internet."

Roblox said it is always working to make sure users are safe. 

"We are deeply troubled by any incident that endangers our users. Roblox’s vision is to be the safest platform on the internet, which is why our policies are purposely stricter than those found on many other platforms. We limit chat for younger users, don’t allow the sharing of external images and have filters designed to block the sharing of personal information. We are continually innovating and investing in safety. While no system is perfect, this year alone we have made over 100 safety enhancements to help protect our users and empower parents and caregivers with greater control and visibility.  

We also understand that this is an industry-wide issue, and we are working to develop industry-wide standards and solutions focused on keeping children safe online. For instance, Roblox has taken an industry-leading stance on age-based communication and will require facial age estimation for all Roblox users who access our communications features by the end of this year and is a founding member of the Tech Coalition’s Lantern project and the Robust Open Online Safety Tools (ROOST). We partner with law enforcement and leading child safety and mental health organizations worldwide to combat the sexual exploitation of children." 

History of lawsuits against the apps

Dig deeper:

The lawsuit is one of several recently filed against Roblox and Discord. 

In August, another DeKalb County family sued the platform, claiming their 9-year-old son was sexually exploited through the app.

In Iowa, a family filed suit after their child was allegedly groomed and kidnapped by a 37-year-old man she met on Roblox. 

In California, a 10-year-old girl was found 250 miles from her home after reportedly communicating with a 27-year-old man via Roblox and Discord. Her family is now suing both companies, accusing them of recklessly operating platforms that allowed grooming and kidnapping to occur.

In 2022, a Clayton County man, Howard Graham, was arrested after allegedly convincing a 13-year-old girl from Kansas to run away and live with him. Police were tipped off by Graham’s roommate, who became suspicious when he realized the girl was not Graham’s stepdaughter.

What's next:

Florida’s attorney general has issued criminal subpoenas to Roblox as part of a separate investigation into whether the company has aided predators in accessing children.

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