Roblox, Discord sued over teen boy’s suicide after – Business News
The mom of a 15-year-old boy who killed himself is suing Roblox and Discord for wrongful death, alleging the apps’ lack of guardrails allowed her son to be sexually coerced by an grownup predator into sending express pictures.
Ethan Dallas – an autistic teen often known as the category clown and the star pitcher on a baseball workforce for youths with disabilities – made a new buddy on Roblox after a participant who stated he was a baby named Nate began messaging him, in line with a swimsuit filed final week within the Superior Court of San Francisco County.
The pair would play Roblox – a world-building video sport – collectively every single day and speak late into the night time. Nate ultimately confirmed Ethan how to disable some of the parental controls his dad and mom had set up.
Ethan Dallas pictured in a social media tribute posted by his mom, Becca Dallas. Rebecca Dallas/Facebook
That’s when the conversations turned sexual and moved to the messaging app Discord, the place Nate demanded Ethan ship express pictures of himself – threatening to share their messages in any other case, in line with the lawsuit.
Ethan began having anger matches, which grew so intense that in December 2022, his mom, Becca Dallas, and her husband positioned Ethan in a residential remedy middle for a 12 months, in line with the New York Times.
“I’m sorry. I feel so bad about myself. I feel like I’m worthless,” Ethan wrote Becca in a textual content message in December 2023, in line with the report.
“Promise you won’t get mad if I tell you?” the 15-year-old wrote.
Becca took Ethan to a Denny’s close to their home in San Diego, the place he advised her about his messages with Nate on Roblox – his favourite video sport that he had been taking part in since he was about seven years outdated.
“I couldn’t believe it,” Becca advised the New York Times. She stated that she thought Roblox “was a children’s game.”
After returning to highschool, Ethan appeared regular – catching up with schoolwork and speaking about shopping for his dad’s car and portray it purple as soon as he received his driver’s license.
A youthful Ethan Dallas pictured in his mom’s social media tribute. Rebecca Dallas/Facebook
One night time, Ethan woke Becca up with a knock on her bed room door. “He just came and laid his head on my lap, and kept saying, ‘I love you,’” Becca advised the New York Times. “And I said, ‘I love you, too.’”
The following morning, her husband discovered Ethan lifeless in his room – simply 4 months after he had confided in his mom about Nate.
A 12 months later, in April 2025, Florida law enforcement advised Becca that “Nate” was seemingly Timothy O’Connor, a 37-year-old man who was arrested on separate expenses of possessing baby pornography and transmitting dangerous materials to minors. In December 2023, O’Connor was deemed mentally unfit to stand trial, in line with public data.
Roblox has about 40 million gamers underneath age 13 – or more than a third of its person base, making it a clear goal for predators.
While the platform is aimed toward younger kids, it additionally caters to grownup customers, who can use the personal chat and voice dialog options to talk with baby gamers.
In July, Roblox launched a face-scanning characteristic to help confirm customers’ ages. But this may be circumvented by taking part in on one other individual’s account, in line with security consultants.
Ethan Dallas’ mom is suing Roblox and Discord for wrongful death. Rebecca Dallas/Facebook
“We are deeply saddened by this tragic loss,” a Roblox spokesperson advised The Post. “While we cannot comment on claims raised in litigation, we always strive to hold ourselves to the highest safety standards.”
“At Roblox, safety is a top priority and we are continually innovating new safety features – over 100 this year alone – that protect our users and empower parents and caregivers with greater control and visibility.”
A Discord spokesperson advised The Post: “We use a combination of advanced technology and trained safety teams to proactively find and remove content that violates our policies. We maintain strong systems to prevent the spread of sexual exploitation and grooming on our platform.”
They added that Discord requires all customers to be at the least 13 to make use of the platform.
In April, Florida’s lawyer normal, James Uthmeier, launched a child-safety investigation into the company, and Louisiana’s lawyer normal, Liz Murrill, sued Roblox final month – calling it “the perfect place for pedophiles.”
More than 20 lawsuits accusing Roblox of enabling sexual exploitation have been filed in federal courts to date this 12 months, in line with the New York Times.
Roblox stated it “cannot comment on claims raised in litigation,” however added that it strives to carry itself “to the highest safety standards.” AP
About a dozen law corporations are working collectively on child-safety lawsuits in opposition to Roblox, hoping to create a legal precedent that might maintain Roblox and social media corporations liable for permitting predators on their platforms, stated Alexandra Walsh, a accomplice at Anapol Weiss.
Becca, who can be suing Discord, is searching for unspecified financial compensation for emotional misery.
“I want his story shared,” stated Becca, who began a basis in his identify this month for youngsters with mental health points.
“To scare parents to know that I thought my kid was safe, and that it wasn’t going to happen to me.”
Ethan began taking part in Roblox in 2015. His dad and mom switched on parental controls that restricted how a lot time he might spend within the sport, and allowed them to approve buddy requests.
But these controls didn’t stop adults from messaging Ethan, in line with the report.
Becca stated she thought Roblox had been monitoring his conversations, since he had been quickly banned a few instances for utilizing phrases like “stupid ass.”
“I never heard about anything inappropriate going on, or I would’ve busted through the door,” she advised the New York Times.
