The problem with “Free Robux sites”.
Recently, there has been a rise of Youtubers promoting websites which promise to give users ‘free robux’. Examples of these promotions are shown below.
You may hear of people saying that those free robux sites are against the Terms of Service in Roblox and therefore against the rules, but what you may not know is that these sites are also illegal.
First, let’s start with the Terms of Service. The Community Usage Guidelines for the Roblox Name and Logo states that, “The use must follow the Logo Guidelines, Community Guidelines for Players and the Community Guidelines for Devs, cannot be associated with anything that is a knockoff, violates the rights of others, creates brand confusion, has harmful or objectionable aspects or does not comply with applicable laws. We reserve the right to decide (in our sole discretion) whether the use is acceptable.”
You may think that the free robux sites may actually follow these guidelines since some may state it clear that they’re not affiliated with the Roblox company, but Roblox gives an example of what you’re supposed to follow.
Complementary apps
✓ App that tests whether you are a Roblox super fan
✕ App that provides free Robux
So we can assume that these apps break the Roblox TOS and CUG. But these apps, and the people creating them, are also doing something illegal. They are violating the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) which all children-targeted sites, including Roblox, are, by law, forced to follow. Below is a list of guidelines which all kids sites must follow:
Post a clear and comprehensive online privacy policy describing their information practices for personal information collected online from children;
Provide direct notice to parents and obtain verifiable parental consent, with limited exceptions, before collecting personal information online from children;
Give parents the choice of consenting to the operator’s collection and internal use of a child’s information, but prohibiting the operator from disclosing that information to third parties (unless disclosure is integral to the site or service, in which case, this must be made clear to parents);
Provide parents access to their child’s personal information to review and/or have the information deleted;
Give parents the opportunity to prevent further use or online collection of a child’s personal information;
Maintain the confidentiality, security, and integrity of information they collect from children, including by taking reasonable steps to release such information only to parties capable of maintaining its confidentiality and security; and
Retain personal information collected online from a child for only as long as is necessary to fulfill the purpose for which it was collected and delete the information using reasonable measures to protect against its unauthorized access or use.
The definition of ‘personal information’ is:
First and last name;
A home or other physical address including street name and name of a city or town;
Online contact information;
A screen or user name that functions as online contact information;
A telephone number;
Geolocation information sufficient to identify street name and name of a city or town; or
Information concerning the child or the parents of that child that the operator collects online from the child and combines with an identifier described above.
These free robux sites do not tell parents when private information is collected; which is serious as an option to receive robux is to take surveys which ask for a user’s zip code, medical information, and other information.
The sponsors of these apps make a profit, albeit a low one, every time someone downloads an app promoted by the free robux apps, as shown on this tweet by my good friend Ruben Sim, AKA Ben Simon.
In recent times, some apps have shown privacy concerns. In this Wired article, the popular app Meitu was caught stealing data such as location and SIM card. The Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada noted that 26 percent of apps tested by their “sweepers” showed some privacy concerns. The apps which users are asked to download could possibly cause some children to unwillingly install viruses and malware into their phones, stealing their data, because they were promised free robux by their favorite YouTuber.
In short, if you are a YouTuber promoting these apps, stop promoting them, you may be caught up in legal action. If you are someone interested in robux, do not install these apps. Aside from the above mentioned privacy concerns, Roblox may delete your account if you are caught earning free robux on them. It would be easier to just buy Robux or BC yourself.
