Roblox game platform blocked in Turkey over child abuse concerns

Turkey has blocked access to the popular video game platform Roblox over concerns about content “that could lead to the exploitation of children,” according to the country’s justice minister, Yilmaz Tunc.

“Our state is obliged to take the necessary measures to ensure the protection of our children,” Tunc said in a statement on Wednesday. “Using technology in a negative way is never acceptable.”

According to data shared by the internet monitoring service NetBlocks, Roblox has indeed been restricted by all major internet providers in Turkey.

⚠️ Confirmed: Live metrics show that popular online gaming and game creation platform Roblox has been restricted on leading internet providers in #Turkey; meanwhile, photo and video sharing app Instagram remains restricted for a sixth day pic.twitter.com/KT5cfuRpsA

— NetBlocks (@netblocks) August 7, 2024

In a statement shared with Recorded Future News, a Roblox spokesperson said that the California-based company is looking forward to working with the country’s authorities “to ensure Roblox is back online in Turkey as soon as possible.”

“We’ve spent almost 20 years making Roblox one of the safest online platforms for our users, particularly the youngest, and ensuring the safety of our users is at the core of everything we do,” the spokesperson said. “We respect the laws and regulations in countries where we operate and share local lawmakers’ commitment to children.”

The company did not specify when the platform might reopen. 

Roblox is an online gaming service that allows users to create and play games designed by other users. The platform has over 70 million daily active players worldwide and is especially popular among children and teenagers. The company reported revenues of $893.5 million for the second quarter of this year.

Roblox has previously been a cause of concerns about child abuse, as predators, pedophiles, and even registered sex offenders have reportedly used the platform to “groom and befriend children.” Some young Roblox developers have also claimed they were financially exploited on the platform.

The restrictions on Roblox were imposed as another popular app, Instagram, faces a ban that has lasted nearly a week, with Turkish authorities accusing it of not abiding by local “laws and rules.”

⚠️ Confirmed: Live metrics show photo and video sharing platform Instagram has been restricted in #Turkey; the ban implemented by the Information and Communication Technologies Authority follows a court order issued this morning to prevent access to the popular Meta social app pic.twitter.com/ivw9UMWtRB

— NetBlocks (@netblocks) August 2, 2024

Instagram was reportedly banned for removing posts by Turkish users that expressed condolences over the killing of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh. 

On Monday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan accused social media platforms of “digital fascism” for allegedly censoring photographs of Palestinian “martyrs.”

Turkish authorities and Instagram’s parent company, Meta, have reportedly held talks about reinstating access to the platform, but the results of these negotiations are unknown. Turkish Transport and Infrastructure Minister Abdulkadir Uraloğlu said that the ban will be lifted “once the necessary steps are taken.”

In a comment to Recorded Future News on Friday, a Meta spokesperson said that as a result of the block on Instagram in Turkey, “millions of people are being deprived of their everyday ways of connecting with family and friends, and businesses are no longer able to reach their customers in the same way.”

“We will continue to do everything we can to restore our services.”