Roblox Preservation and Emergency Requests: Police Guide and Template

Roblox is a platform where many users are children, so investigators often need to secure an account quickly, and sometimes in a genuine emergency. Roblox names preservation requests in its public law enforcement FAQ, but its public pages are short: Roblox says verified law enforcement entities can find additional information in its Portal, which we did not access. This guide states exactly what Roblox publishes about preservation and emergency disclosure, what it does not, and offers two templates built on the federal statute. It is for authorised law enforcement and government staff only and does not repeat the general process in our Roblox law enforcement data request guide.

Preservation requests: what Roblox says

The Help Center page "Help Center FAQs for Law Enforcement" says that an agent "aiming to serve Roblox with a subpoena, search warrant, preservation request, or similar legal process" should submit the request through the Roblox Law Enforcement Portal. It adds that legal processes "should comply with applicable law such as 18 USC 2701-2712", that Roblox reviews requests "for facial validity and legal sufficiency, and will object when appropriate", and that Roblox "does not waive, and expressly reserves, all available rights and objections". It also says verified law enforcement entities can find additional information inside the Portal. The sign-in page is public; we did not create an account or log in.

What Roblox does not publish on its public pages: how long it preserves data after a request, whether you can extend it, which identifiers a preservation request needs, whether it is a one-time snapshot, or whether the account holder is told. Do not assume any of these. Check the Portal's own guidance after you are verified.

The federal statute. The Roblox page points to 18 U.S.C. sections 2701 to 2712, which include section 2703(f). It says a provider, "upon the request of a governmental entity, shall take all necessary steps to preserve records and other evidence in its possession pending the issuance of a court order or other process", retained "for a period of 90 days, which shall be extended for an additional 90-day period upon a renewed request by the governmental entity". That is the statute's text. Roblox's public page does not repeat the 90-day period or say how it applies, so confirm in the Portal.

Emergency and child-safety situations

Roblox's law enforcement FAQ does not describe a separate emergency route. Three other official Roblox pages are relevant:

• Privacy and Cookie Policy. The text Roblox publishes (on its Help Center and at roblox.com/info/privacy) is headed "Effective Date: November 1, 2026" and introduces itself as an update taking effect on that date, so on 24 October 2026 it was not yet in force. Its change summary says Roblox "added language describing our practices for sharing information with authorities". It says Roblox may share the contents of communications "to law enforcement or judicial authorities to address a threat to life or safety of a person", and may share personal information if it believes disclosure "may prevent a crime". Its regional sections refer to requests from law enforcement where there is "a risk to user safety or security". The earlier version dated 30 April 2026 (we checked the German translation attached to the same page; no English copy of that version is attached) already contains equivalent wording on threats to life and safety and on preventing a crime.
• Newsroom, "How Roblox Partners With Law Enforcement" (7 August 2025). Roblox says it has "dedicated internal teams that work around the clock to support law enforcement requests, investigate platform safety threats, and escalate serious threats to appropriate law enforcement", and maintains "direct communication channels" with the FBI and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) for immediate escalation of serious threats that Roblox itself identifies. It says its NCMEC reports include "key information regarding aggravating factors or imminency concerns".
• Reporting suspected child sexual exploitation. The same post says users can report it directly to NCMEC's CyberTipline.

These describe how Roblox escalates its own findings and what its policy permits. They do not set out an emergency form, required fields or a response time, so none should be assumed. For a statutory basis, 18 U.S.C. section 2702(b)(8) and (c)(4) allow a provider to disclose to a governmental entity if it "in good faith, believes that an emergency involving danger of death or serious physical injury to any person requires disclosure without delay"; the statute says "may", not "must".

Template: preservation request

Adapt to your agency's format; not legal advice. Roblox does not publish required fields, so this is a content checklist to enter or attach in the Portal.

[AGENCY LETTERHEAD]
[DATE]

To: Roblox
    (submitted through the Roblox Law Enforcement Portal)

Re: Request to preserve records, 18 U.S.C. § 2703(f)
Agency reference / case number: [CASE NUMBER]

I am [OFFICER NAME], [TITLE], [UNIT], [AGENCY], a governmental entity
conducting an official criminal investigation.
Contact: [OFFICIAL GOVERNMENT EMAIL], [DIRECT TELEPHONE].

Pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 2703(f)(1), I request that Roblox preserve all
records and other evidence in its possession for the account(s) below,
pending the issuance of a court order or other process.

  Username(s):            [USERNAME(S)]
  Numeric user ID(s):     [USER ID(S), IF KNOWN]
  Account email:          [EMAIL, IF KNOWN]
  Experience / game:      [NAME OR ID, IF RELEVANT]
  Incident date/time:     [DATE, TIME, TIME ZONE]
  Date range of interest: [START DATE] to [END DATE]
  Records of interest:    [e.g. account registration data, login/IP
                           logs, chat and message records, purchase
                           and transaction records]

Period requested: [90 DAYS FROM RECEIPT]. I will submit a renewed
request under § 2703(f)(2) before it ends if process has not issued.

Please confirm receipt and the date and scope of preservation.

[OFFICER NAME]
[TITLE, AGENCY]

Template: emergency disclosure request

Adapt to your agency's format; not legal advice. This is modelled on the statutory test, not on a Roblox form, which is not public.

EMERGENCY DISCLOSURE REQUEST
To: Roblox (via the Roblox Law Enforcement Portal)
[DATE AND TIME, WITH TIME ZONE]
Agency reference / case number: [CASE NUMBER]

REQUESTING OFFICER
[OFFICER NAME], [TITLE], [AGENCY]
[24-HOUR TELEPHONE], [OFFICIAL GOVERNMENT EMAIL]

ACCOUNT(S)
Username / numeric user ID / email: [IDENTIFIERS]

NATURE OF THE EMERGENCY
[Facts only: who is at risk, what is known, and why it involves
danger of death or serious physical injury.]

WHY DISCLOSURE IS NEEDED WITHOUT DELAY
[Facts on timing; why legal process cannot be obtained in time.]

INFORMATION REQUESTED (narrow, tied to the emergency)
[e.g. registration details, IP / login records, and messages relating
to the emergency, for [DATE RANGE].]

I ask Roblox to consider disclosure under 18 U.S.C. § 2702(b)(8) and
(c)(4) because I believe an emergency involving danger of death or
serious physical injury requires disclosure without delay. I will follow with legal
process: [TYPE, EXPECTED DATE].

[OFFICER NAME]

Common mistakes Roblox's guidance points to

• Emailing or faxing process. Roblox says it will not accept it and will not respond.
• Assuming a request will be honoured as written. Roblox says it reviews every request for facial validity and legal sufficiency and will object when appropriate.
• Routing public reports through the Portal. Roblox's newsroom encourages any user who believes a crime has been committed to contact local law enforcement directly, and points users to its in-platform abuse reporting tool.
• Relying on the preservation to run indefinitely. Roblox publishes no retention period on its public pages, so follow with legal process promptly.

Related

• Roblox: law enforcement data request guide
• Roblox in the police data-request directory
• Investigator handbook: United States

Sources

• Roblox: Help Center FAQs for Law Enforcement
• Roblox: Privacy and Cookie Policy
• Roblox newsroom: How Roblox Partners With Law Enforcement
• 18 U.S.C. section 2703, U.S. Code 2024 edition (govinfo.gov)
• 18 U.S.C. section 2702, U.S. Code 2024 edition (govinfo.gov)

This guide is information, not legal advice; Roblox can change its pages at any time. The statute wording quoted here was checked against the U.S. Code on uscode.house.gov, current through Public Law 119-124 (15 October 2026): sections 2702 and 2703 were last amended in 2018. For more platforms see the police data-request directory, and for victims in any country see the country-by-country cybercrime help hub.