Online Grooming and Sex Abuse Lawsuits
In the digital age, online grooming has become increasingly prevalent, particularly due to the lack of regulations on social media companies. Many people nationwide have filed lawsuits against online social and gaming platforms for failing to protect children from predators and child sexual abuse.
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Author: Kathryn Kosmides
Survivor Advocate
- Online grooming and sexual exploitation occur when adults on online platforms befriend and subsequently take advantage of children, often soliciting sexual acts or images from their victims.
- Dozens of families recently have sued platforms such as Roblox, Discord, and Meta for failing to protect minor users with meaningful safeguards, including age and identity verification.
- If you or a loved one was impacted by online grooming or child sexual exploitation, you have legal rights and options for holding the responsible parties accountable.
What Is Online Grooming
Online grooming refers to the process by which individuals build emotional connections with potential victims, typically children, on digital platforms such as social media or gaming sites. Predators then use these connections to gain victims’ trust, establish control, and manipulate them into engaging in sexual activities. Recently, Roblox, Discord, and Snapchat have come under fire for allowing grooming to frequently occur on their online platforms, prompting mass lawsuits and criminal investigations.
Online Grooming and Sex Abuse Statistics
A 2024 report by Childlight, a global child safety data institute, found that more than 300 million children worldwide were affected by online child sexual exploitation and abuse in the last year. The report found that:
- One case of abuse is reported every second.
- 3.5% of children experienced sexual extortion.
- One in eight children faced non-consensual image offenses and online solicitation.
The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children runs a CyberTipline, which receives reports of suspected child sexual exploitation and supports law enforcement efforts to stop the circulation of child sexual abuse material. In 2024, the tipline received reports of 29.2 million incidents of suspected child sexual exploitation. While this is about 7 million fewer incidents than the prior year, the tipline continued to see an influx of time-sensitive reports involving children at risk of imminent harm.
Long-Term Effects of Online Grooming on Survivors
The effects of online grooming are profound and far-reaching, impacting survivors well into adulthood. Grooming can significantly affect a person’s well-being, relationships, and self-esteem, causing long-term hindrances in trust, mental health, sexual function, substance abuse, and self-harm.
- What Is Online Grooming
- Online Grooming and Sex Abuse Statistics
- Long-Term Effects of Online Grooming on Survivors
- Online Grooming and Sex Abuse Allegations
- Can I Sue for Online Grooming?
- Steps to Take After Experiencing Online Grooming
- File an Online Grooming and Sex Abuse Lawsuit
- Speak With a Child Sexual Abuse Lawyer
Online Grooming and Sex Abuse Allegations
Over the past several years, social media and online gaming platforms such as Roblox, Discord, and Meta have been at the center of an increasing number of lawsuits regarding the grooming and exploitation of children.
Roblox Lawsuits
Roblox, a free game-creation platform that allows users to build games or play games created by others, has faced dozens of recent lawsuits alleging that it failed to protect minor users from sexual exploitation, grooming, and other serious crimes. In September 2025, plaintiffs in at least 31 federal lawsuits against Roblox asked the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation to consolidate their suits as an MDL in California.
In August 2025, a Texas man sued Roblox, alleging he was groomed at age 11 on the platform when an individual in his 30s posed as a minor and began requesting illicit images from him in exchange for money on the platform. The alleged abuse occurred in 2007, just three years after Roblox’s founding.
In September 2025, the mother of a 15-year-old California boy who committed suicide filed a lawsuit against both Roblox and Discord, alleging her son was groomed and coerced to send explicit images on the apps. Rebecca Dallas accused the companies of “recklessly and deceptively operating their business in a way that led to the sexual exploitation and suicide” of her son. Dallas argued that children would be less likely to interact with predators if Roblox and Discord had taken steps to screen users before allowing them on the apps or implemented age/identity verification.
Discord Lawsuits
Most lawsuits against Discord are tied to suits against Roblox or other online platforms, as Discord is frequently used as a secondary contact location after predators have lured children off the original platform.
Multiple lawsuits were filed against Discord in October 2025, including one by a Georgia family that alleges a predator on Roblox groomed their then-12-year-old son and convinced him to send sexually explicit photos of himself on Discord. A similar lawsuit from another parent alleges that, despite setting up parental controls, the parent found that his 13-year-old son had befriended an adult posing as a 16-year-old. The predator offered his son Roblox gift cards in exchange for sexually explicit photos, which his son sent via Discord.
Meta Lawsuits
Many lawsuits against Meta are also tied to Roblox. In September 2025, two former Meta safety researchers told a U.S. Senate committee that Meta covered up potential harms to children in its virtual reality products. Meta hosts Roblox on its VR app store, and researchers found that coordinated pedophile rings were using it to exploit children.
Can I Sue for Online Grooming?
If you or a loved one was a victim of online grooming on Discord, Roblox, Meta, or another online platform, you may have grounds to sue those companies for failing to protect children with adequate safeguards. Civil lawsuits enable victims and their families to seek monetary compensation for the harm they have endured, while criminal charges hold individual perpetrators accountable through criminal penalties, including jail time.
Steps to Take After Experiencing Online Grooming
After experiencing grooming, discovering that your child has been groomed, or realizing that you were groomed years ago, there are several immediate actions you can take to protect yourself, your family, and your legal rights. You can report the abuse, seek medical attention if necessary, and preserve all available evidence, such as chat logs and screenshots.
If you are uncertain about reporting or need guidance, consult with professionals who specialize in supporting sexual assault survivors, such as therapists, counselors, or helpline services. Then, consider consulting a sex abuse attorney to learn more about your legal options.
Report Online Grooming and Sex Abuse
Contact your local law enforcement agency or the appropriate child protective services to report the suspected sexual grooming. You can also submit a CyberTip Report to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children or report the abuse to the FBI.
Resources for Survivors
There are both national and local resources available to grooming and sexual exploitation survivors. Nationally, the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network, or RAINN, offers resources and support for those affected by online grooming. RAINN also operates a National Sexual Assault Hotline, which can be reached by calling 800-656-HOPE, texting HOPE to 64673, or using the site’s online chat function.
File an Online Grooming and Sex Abuse Lawsuit
The process for filing a civil lawsuit for online grooming and sex abuse will vary based on the nature of the abuse, how long ago it occurred, the age of the victim, and more. Additionally, each state has its own statute of limitations for filing sexual abuse lawsuits. For this reason, it’s crucial to consult with an experienced attorney to learn more about how much time you have to take action.
Speak With a Child Sexual Abuse Lawyer
If you or a loved one experienced online grooming, child sexual exploitation, or sexual abuse, it’s important to contact an experienced sexual abuse attorney to learn more about your legal rights and options for seeking accountability.
At Helping Survivors, we work to connect survivors and their families with trusted legal advocates who can file civil lawsuits against the individuals, institutions, and organizations that perpetrated and enabled the abuse.
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