Roblox AI Age Verification Problems: Safety, Accuracy, Workarounds
Roblox’s mandatory face-scan program is meant to keep younger minors away from unknown adults—and reassure regulators and parents. But as the rollout widens, Roblox AI age verification problems are colliding with on-the-ground reality: misclassifications, gaps for under‑13s, and workaround markets that blunt safety gains while shaping who can create and earn on the platform [1][2][3][4][5].
How the system works: Persona face scans and age-bucketing explained
Roblox uses third‑party provider Persona to estimate a user’s age from a face scan. The system then assigns the account to a broad age bracket—under 9, 9–12, 13–15, 16–17, 18–20, or 21+—and uses these buckets to control who users can chat with and gate certain features. Roblox says the AI is typically accurate within one to two years for users aged 5 to 25, and that submitted images are used only for age estimation before being deleted. The company has expanded the program from select countries to a global rollout as part of broader youth safety efforts [1][2][3].
Roblox presents the approach as scalable: apply Persona age estimation to the platform’s vast user base and use Roblox age-bucketing to reduce risky contact patterns. But the company has not provided robust accuracy metrics, error rates, or bias breakdowns beyond the “one to two years” claim, leaving businesses, creators, and parents guessing about how reliably the AI performs in real conditions [1][3].
Where it breaks: misclassifications, false positives, and examples
Real-world outcomes tell a different story. Reporting and user accounts show extensive misclassifications: adults getting flagged as minors, while some children—including at least one reported 10‑year‑old—are categorized as 18+ or even 21+. Roblox has partly attributed certain 21+ labels to parents completing scans on behalf of children, but it has not supplied comprehensive accuracy data to contextualize how often this happens or how the model behaves across demographics [1][2][3].
For users 13 and older, some misclassifications can be corrected by submitting a government ID. Younger children, however, cannot use ID verification due to privacy constraints, leaving them reliant on the AI and parental correction flows. The result: persistent errors for the very group most in need of protection, with limited recourse when the system gets it wrong [1][3][4].
Spoofing and bypasses: non-live images, edits, and off-platform workarounds
Alongside misclassifications, users have demonstrated that the system can be fooled. Reports show the checks can be bypassed with non‑live images—photos of celebrities, edited pictures, and even child drawings altered to appear older—undermining claims that the approach reliably fences off adults from minors (or vice versa). Meanwhile, a secondary market continues to sell pre‑aged or unverified Roblox accounts, offering a direct way to sidestep on‑platform controls and complicating identity and safety enforcement [1][5].
These gaps elevate operational risk: bypasses weaken protective barriers; gray‑market accounts erode the link between real users and verification status; and inconsistent outcomes make trust and safety policy harder to measure and prove in audits or legal scrutiny [1][2][5].
Policy and privacy constraints: ID verification, age limits, and parental flows
Roblox promotes ID and phone verification for creators and higher‑risk features like selling assets and voice chat. But the ID route is available only for users 13 and older, reflecting privacy rules that keep younger children from submitting IDs. Roblox says face images are used solely for age estimation and then deleted, yet it has not published detailed retention or error metrics for independent review. For parents and operators, the net effect is a patchwork: older teens may resolve errors through ID, while younger kids remain at the mercy of imperfect AI and parental correction channels [1][3][4].
If you need the official view on flows and requirements, see Roblox’s newsroom announcement (external), which outlines the expansion plan and verification options [3].
Roblox AI age verification problems in practice for creators and businesses
For creators and brands, verification now ties directly to access and monetization. Developers can gate experiences by verification status, aligning safety policy with what features users can access and whether creators can use higher‑risk tools. This linkage can help with compliance goals, but it also drives demand for workarounds—and gives an advantage to those willing to operate through unverified or pre‑aged accounts bought off‑platform. The broader legal context adds pressure: lawsuits allege Roblox has enabled grooming and child abuse, raising the stakes for both platform controls and their real‑world effectiveness [1][2][4][5].
Technical and governance risks of outsourcing age estimation to third parties
Relying on a vendor means accepting opaque model behavior unless the provider and platform publish accuracy, bias, and error reporting that can withstand public and regulatory scrutiny. Today, Roblox points to typical accuracy windows but not audited error rates or demographic breakdowns. Businesses evaluating similar tools should probe vendor transparency, data handling, and recourse paths when the AI gets it wrong. The presence of spoofing techniques and a robust market for aged accounts signals a need for layered defenses beyond a single face-scan checkpoint [1][2][3][5].
Recommendations for platforms deploying AI age estimation
- Publish third‑party and in‑house accuracy metrics, including false‑positive/negative rates by age, region, and device class.
- Offer clear appeals and human review—especially for under‑13s who cannot use ID.
- Combine signals: device and behavioral risk scoring, parental verification, and periodic re‑checks to reduce spoofing.
- Monitor and act against secondary markets selling aged or unverified accounts.
- Communicate privacy practices plainly and provide independent audits of data retention and deletion.
For a deeper dive into building trustworthy AI operations, including evaluation and rollout patterns, Explore AI tools and playbooks.
Sources
[1] Roblox’s AI-Powered Age Verification Is a Complete Mess | WIRED
https://www.wired.com/story/robloxs-ai-powered-age-verification-is-a-complete-mess/
[2] Lawsuits claim Roblox endangers kids. New AI age verification aims …
https://www.cnn.com/2025/11/18/tech/roblox-ai-age-verification-youth-safety
[3] Roblox Announces Ambitious Plan to Expand Age Estimation to All …
https://corp.roblox.com/newsroom/2025/09/roblox-to-expand-age-estimation-to-all-users
[4] Account verification | Documentation – Roblox Creator Hub
https://create.roblox.com/docs/production/publishing/account-verification
[5] Roblox Accounts For Sale | Eldorado.gg
https://www.eldorado.gg/roblox-accounts-for-sale/a/70-1-0
