The Lanier Law Firm Represents the Arkansas Attorney General in Claims Against Roblox and Discord Over a “Predatory Pipeline” Targeting Children
Lawsuit claims the companies’ digital platforms expose children to sexual predators
The Lanier Law Firm is representing the State of Arkansas and Attorney General Tim Griffin in litigation against Roblox Corp. and Discord Inc., alleging that the companies’ online platforms are exposing Arkansas children to sexual predators, grooming, sextortion, and physical harm while assuring parents their children are safe. The complaint filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court characterizes the companies’ business operations as a deliberate “two-stage predatory pipeline” based on engineering decisions that have ignored technologies that could protect young users.
“Roblox is a digital playground for America’s kids, but what many parents don’t realize is that Roblox has filled that playground with adults,” says the firm’s Mark Lanier. “We have evidence that Roblox is even allowing predators to use voice modulators and pretend to be kids—because it’s good for Roblox’s business and the company doesn’t care about the dangers it’s perpetuating.”
According to the complaint, Roblox functions as the first point of contact where predators pose as children, build trust through gameplay and the platform’s virtual currency, and then migrate victims to the messaging platform Discord. On this platform, Discord’s anonymous servers and unmonitored direct messages allow exploitation to escalate into sextortion, solicitation of explicit images, and documented in-person assaults.
