Roblox agrees to integrate PhilSys for age, identity checks in PH
MANILA, Philippines — Roblox has agreed to integrate the Philippine Identification System into its age and identity verification system for users in the country, the Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center said Friday, August 28.
The commitment came after Philippine government officials met with Roblox executives in Singapore on Thursday, to discuss stronger safeguards against online grooming and extremist recruitment, according to the CICC.
"We are pleased with the direction of our discussions with Roblox and the willingness they have shown to work with the Philippine government. This is an important beginning, and we want to build on it to create a safer gaming environment for our children," CICC Executive Director Renato "Aboy" Paraiso said in a statement.
The details of how PhilSys will be integrated into Roblox's existing age-check system have yet to be finalized.
Information and Communications Technology Secretary Henry Aguda said a Roblox team is expected to arrive in the Philippines in the first week of September to study the technical implementation.
"Nag-agree sila [Roblox] this year na mag-iintegrate na sila sa PhilSys. Sabi nila [Roblox] pagdating sa identity at age verification, ready na sila mag-integrate sa PhilSys," Aguda said in a dzRH interview Friday.
("Roblox agreed that this year, they will integrate with PhilSys. They said that when it comes to identity and age verification, they are ready to integrate with PhilSys.")
Aguda said the integration could be in place by October.
Age-based restrictions
Roblox already requires users to complete an age check to access chat. Its existing system allows age verification through a government-issued ID or facial age estimation.
The company says its facial age estimation technology has a mean absolute error of about 1.4 years for users younger than 18.
According to the CICC, accounts that do not undergo an age check will have chat disabled and will have more limited access to games on the platform.
Roblox also committed to tighter age-based restrictions on communication, aimed at limiting interactions between children and users outside their age groups, the agency said.
Aguda said requiring stronger identity checks would not only help verify young users but could also make it harder for adults seeking to harm children to hide behind false identities.
"Hindi lang kasi 'yung minor ang kailangang mag-authenticate para magkaroon ng value. 'Yung adult ba na potentially predators, potentially groomers malalaman na natin," Aguda said.
("It is not only minors who need to authenticate for this to have value. We will also be able to identify adults who could potentially be predators or groomers.")
Roblox also plans to establish an office in the Philippines by October to allow faster coordination with government authorities, according to the CICC.
Talks with Meta
Philippine officials also met with executives of Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, in Singapore over child safety and harmful online content.
"Sabi ni Facebook, 'we hear you, we acknowledge the gaps and we will do better,'" Aguda said.
("Facebook said, 'We hear you, we acknowledge the gaps and we will do better.'")
Aguda said the government and Meta are working on a memorandum of understanding that is expected to be signed in the Philippines once the document is finalized.
The meetings involved officials from the CICC and Department of Information and Communications Technology, along with representatives from the National Bureau of Investigation, National Telecommunications Commission, Congress and Office of the Executive Secretary.
The discussions come amid heightened government scrutiny of social media and gaming platforms following recent incidents of school violence and concerns over online grooming, violent content and extremist influence.
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