Grooming, Radicalization, and Online Safety
There are significant amounts of literature, research and studies that dive into the concerns communities, organizations, and especially parents, have about online content which advocates, suggests, or incites violence. Our nonprofit organization, Prevent the Aftermath, Inc. (PTA) (www.preventtheaftermath.org) works to stop targeted violence through prevention: teaching law enforcement, prosecutors, and mental health professionals how to recognize, assess, and stop active shooter violence BEFORE it can metastasize and occur. PTA prides itself in bipartisanship and will work with anyone who wants to stop targeted violence. One of the many sources we often review is the work of Dr. David Riedman and the K-12 School Shooting Database (https://k12ssdb.org/). Dr. Riedman is a devoted professional, highly passionate about his work, and his podcasts, analysis, and reports provide a lot of information in this subject space.
On October 29, 2025, Dr. Riedman published an online article regarding the dangers people may face while on an online platform, and how adults or those with ill-intent work to exploit gaps to groom pre-teens into school shooters (https://k12ssdb.substack.com/p/are-your-kids-spending-hours-with). He specifically looked at Roblox; a very popular online platform and game creation system where users design, create, and play games. Dr. Riedman cited how some users have appeared to use design and customization tools to mimic previous active shooting tragedies and scenarios, and pointed out an example of how some users on Roblox carried over to “Discord,” a free communication app, to further discuss ideology, grooming, etc. He then provided links to information about what parents can do to keep their children safe while online. This was something our organization sought to gain more information on as PTA has recently and purposely partnered with Roblox as theirs is a very popular online platform with millions of users making it a target for individuals with malintent.
PTA did reach out to Roblox regarding the concerns identified by Dr. Riedman, and Roblox immediately worked to investigate the allegations. Furthermore, PTA learned more about Roblox’s approach to preemptive risk detection, content moderation at scale, partnerships with law enforcement, and ongoing platform safety efforts.
This discussion further cemented PTA’s positive impression of Roblox, as Roblox fully understands the constant threats and attempts at exploitation they (and other online platforms) face. In our observations, Roblox has repeatedly demonstrated a proactive commitment to keeping its platform safe and regularly works with law enforcement to report concerns and help prosecute those that try to use their technology to exploit others. Because of this transparency and willingness to share information and work with others, PTA continues to consider Roblox as a model company for other online platforms. For example, Roblox has instituted numerous holistic safety initiatives, including robust parental controls, a Teen Council, a Parent and Caregiver Council, and a plan to expand age estimation to all Roblox users who access Roblox’s on-platform communication features by the end of this year. We encourage law enforcement agencies to see Roblox’ LE information at https://en.help.roblox.com/hc/en-us/articles/11219680442260-Help-Center-FAQs-for-Law-Enforcement, or directly reach out to Roblox LE liaison Nick Lyon at nlyon@roblox.com if they experience any issues or concerns with the platform.
PTA would like to extend its thanks to both Dr. Riedman and Roblox for their mutual diligence and dedication to keeping children and communities safe.
Sincerely,
Brian Peete
Executive Director
Prevent the Aftermath, Inc.
Read the Press Release here.
