- RBLX
+0.42%
Investing.com — Shares of Roblox Corp. (NYSE: RBLX) slipped 3% Tuesday after short seller Bleecker Street Research published a critical report detailing alleged vulnerabilities in the platform’s child safety architecture and flagging sharp decelerations in core user metrics.
In its report, Bleecker Street disclosed an active short position, arguing that Roblox’s age verification protocol—which depends on a one-time facial scan—is easily circumvented
To test the system, the research firm reported purchasing 100 age-verified child accounts across several third-party marketplaces for a total of $190.91. Researchers were able to log into all 100 accounts from five different countries within two hours without triggering re-verification requests. Bleecker Street identified nine active secondary markets selling pre-verified credentials, noting that four of those platforms alone hosted more than 65,000 listings.
Unsure what to buy ahead of earnings? Our AI’s recent pre-earnings calls delivered gains of +77% to +118% after results dropped. See this month’s earnings picks »
The report also detailed severe parental control bypasses. In one documented instance, an account registered to a 13-to-15-year-old loosened its own parental restrictions using an eight-year-old’s debit card, subsequently initiating unmoderated chats with a face-verified adult account. Using minor-registered accounts, investigators were able to access explicit content, including sexual minigames, pornography, and extremist imagery.
Beyond safety concerns, Bleecker Street challenged the durability of Roblox’s post-pandemic growth engine. Analyzing third-party data tracking 6.7 million accounts, the firm estimated that new active users declined roughly 50% year-over-year in the third quarter, with no observable rebound through September. The report added that summer hit Steal An Egg drew 20 percentage points fewer new players compared to breakthrough titles released during the same period in 2025.
Bleecker Street pointed to Roblox’s recent filings to underscore an operational slowdown. Over a two-quarter span, reported daily active users contracted from 151.5 million to 123 million, while monthly paying users dropped from 36.7 million to 27 million. Concurrently, creator payout growth moderated from 85% to 15%, alongside third-quarter bookings guidance indicating an expected 14% to 18% decline.
