Keep kids safe online with smarter privacy, controls and age checks.

Keep kids safe online: A practical guide for parents navigating online games like Roblox

Online gaming is now a central part of childhood. Platforms such as Roblox, Minecraft, Fortnite and others function as social spaces, creative studios and entertainment hubs all at once. For children, these environments can support creativity, collaboration and problem-solving. For parents, they introduce real concerns about privacy, exposure, communication with strangers and digital wellbeing. Understanding how to keep kids safe online has become an essential parenting skill rather than a specialist interest reserved for gamers.

This guide explains how parents can protect children while they play online games, with particular reference to Roblox’s latest safety initiatives. It draws on historical lessons from earlier online platforms, current technical safeguards and practical steps families can apply at home. The aim is not to create fear, but to establish clear, informed boundaries that allow children to enjoy games safely.

Why online games require active parental oversight

Online games were once largely single-player experiences. Today, most popular titles are persistent online worlds with chat systems, friend networks, user-generated content and in-game economies. These features bring benefits, but they also introduce risks such as unwanted contact, inappropriate language, scams, grooming attempts and data misuse.

Children often lack the developmental maturity to recognise these risks on their own. This does not reflect poor judgement; it reflects normal childhood development. For that reason, parental involvement remains critical even as children grow more technically confident. Keeping kids safe online means combining technology-based controls with ongoing guidance and conversation.

Starting with system and device privacy settings

The foundation of online safety begins before a game is ever launched. Every console, computer, tablet and smartphone includes privacy and security settings that determine how data is shared and how users interact with one another. Parents should treat these settings as the first layer of protection.

Location tracking should be disabled unless there is a clear reason for it. Microphone and camera access should be restricted to specific apps rather than left open system-wide. Profile visibility can often be limited so that only approved friends can interact with a child’s account. These steps reduce the amount of information exposed to strangers and limit opportunities for misuse.

Most modern gaming platforms also offer age-based defaults. Parents should review these settings manually rather than relying on automatic configurations, as defaults may change after software updates.

Understanding games before children play them

Not all games operate in the same way, even when they appear similar on the surface. Age ratings provided by organisations such as the ESRB offer a starting point, but they do not tell the full story. Ratings typically address content such as violence or language, not the quality of social interaction or the structure of in-game communication.

Parents who want to keep kids safe online benefit from researching games before approving them. Watching gameplay videos, reading reviews written by other parents and exploring forums can provide insight into how players interact. Many concerns arise not from the game mechanics themselves, but from open chat systems or user-generated content that is difficult to moderate at scale.

Age verification and the role of facial age estimation

One of the most significant recent developments in online gaming safety is Roblox’s introduction of mandatory age checks for access to chat features. Roblox has become the first major gaming platform to require age verification for users of all ages who wish to communicate through chat.

This system uses Facial Age Estimation technology directly within the app. The process is designed to be fast and secure, analysing facial features to estimate a user’s age without permanently storing biometric data. Once verified, users are placed into one of six age groups, ranging from under nine to twenty-one and older. Communication features are then restricted to age-appropriate interactions.

Chat remains disabled by default for children under nine unless a parent provides consent following an age check. This approach reflects a broader shift in platform responsibility, where safety is embedded into system design rather than left solely to user behaviour. For parents, it provides an additional technical safeguard that supports ongoing supervision.

Teaching children to protect personal information

Technology alone cannot address every risk. Children also need clear guidance on what information should remain private. Many online harms begin with small disclosures that seem harmless at the time. A first name, a school reference or a birthday shared in chat can gradually be pieced together.

Parents should explain, in age-appropriate language, that personal information includes full names, addresses, phone numbers, email addresses, school names, passwords and identifiable photographs. Even background details in images, such as school logos or house numbers, can reveal more than intended.

Encouraging children to use screen names that do not resemble their real names and to choose generic avatars adds another layer of privacy. These habits are easier to establish early than to correct later.

Using parental controls as ongoing tools

Parental controls are sometimes misunderstood as one-time settings. In practice, they function best as adjustable tools that evolve alongside a child’s maturity. Most gaming platforms allow parents to set time limits, restrict purchases, approve friend requests and limit access to certain features.

Spending controls deserve particular attention. In-game purchases can accumulate quickly, and children may not fully understand the value of money in digital form. Requiring a password for purchases or setting monthly limits protects both finances and trust within the family.

Time management tools also support healthy routines. Rather than framing limits as punishment, parents can present them as part of balanced screen use that includes schoolwork, sleep and offline play.

Recognising and avoiding suspicious links and scams

Online games often include links in player profiles, chat messages or in-game advertisements. Some promise free rewards, exclusive items or cheat codes. These links are a common method used to harvest personal information or compromise accounts.

Children should be taught to pause before clicking any unfamiliar link and to seek adult approval. This habit mirrors real-world safety practices, such as asking before accepting something from a stranger. Parents can reinforce this lesson by explaining how scams work rather than relying on simple warnings.