KUALA LUMPUR – Australia’s online safety regulator has stepped up pressure on major gaming platforms, demanding greater transparency on how they protect children from online harm.
The eSafety Commissioner has issued legally binding transparency notices to companies behind popular gaming platforms, including Roblox Corporation, Microsoft’s Minecraft, Epic Games’ Fortnite, and Valve Corporation’s Steam.
The notices require the companies to provide details on their safety systems, staffing structures, and measures used to safeguard young users, in line with cybersecurity standards.
Failure to comply may result in financial penalties and possible civil proceedings.
eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant said online gaming platforms are increasingly being exploited as spaces for harmful interactions involving children.
“What we often see after these offenders make contact with children in online game environments, they then move children to private messaging services,” Inman Grant said in a statement reported by The Star.
She said gaming platforms have evolved beyond entertainment spaces and now function as major social ecosystems for young users.
With nine in 10 Australians aged between eight and 17 participating in online gaming, the level of exposure remains significant.
“Predatory adults know this and target children through grooming or embedding terrorist and violent extremist narratives in gameplay, increasing the risks of contact offending, radicalisation and other off-platform harms,” she said.
The regulator’s action comes amid growing concerns over the difficulty of monitoring real-time conversations, particularly when children are interacting with strangers. Unlike conventional social media platforms, live gaming environments make it more difficult for automated moderation systems to identify and prevent threats.
Roblox and Microsoft had not responded to requests for comment at the time of reporting.
The increased scrutiny also follows recent legal action involving Roblox in the United States.
On Tuesday, the company reached settlements with the states of Alabama and West Virginia over allegations that it had failed to adequately protect children on its platform.
The agreement includes a payment of more than US$23 million and commitments to strengthen safety controls related to chat functions and gameplay features.
Roblox is also facing more than 140 lawsuits in US federal courts, with claims alleging it knowingly enabled child sexual exploitation.
In response to mounting concerns, the company recently announced new platform changes.
Beginning in June, Roblox plans to introduce age-specific account categories, including “Roblox Kids” for users aged five to eight and “Roblox Select” for users aged between nine and 15. – April 22, 2026