On the Radar: How Teen Boys Gamble, Roblox’s Age-Check Problems and TikTok Sold, Best TV Shows to Binge Watch

Gambling Is Illegal for Minors, How Are Teen Boys Managing It?

What? Minors are not legally allowed to gamble. However, the legalization of sports betting for adults has led to an increase in gambling ads seen during sports competitions. Additionally, video games frequently use gambling-like systems, such as loot boxes, to get around traditional gambling restrictions.

So What? In a new study conducted by Common Sense Media, researchers found that 36% of boys age 11 to 17 have gambled in the past year (including through sports betting and those in-game purchases). And 6 in 10 said they were randomly exposed to gambling ads and content through the algorithms on social media or YouTube.

Now What? Gambling can become an addiction, leading to a lifetime of financial troubles and heartache, so warn your son about the dangers of gambling. Sports bets and in-game purchases cost real-world money—and loot boxes are rarely worth the cost. And as an added measure, don’t save credit-card information to your child’s devices for purchases, since they could inadvertently rack up quite the hefty bill on immaterial items.

Age-Verified Roblox Accounts Getting Sold Online

What? Just a few weeks ago, Roblox rolled out a new age-check process to help protect child users. Unfortunately, the artificial intelligence software being used to verify ages is failing to do so correctly. And now, adult accounts that were falsely identified as child accounts are being sold online to predators.

So What? The whole reason for Roblox’s age checking was to protect children from predators pretending to be other kids in the chat. With this AI failure, those protections are pretty much void. Not to mention that legitimate child users being falsely identified as older users are now unable to chat with real friends in the app.

Now What? According to WIRED, Roblox is working on the issue, but in the meantime, it might be wise to disable your child’s ability to chat in the game—or even just take a break from Roblox entirely. And remember, even after these problems are fixed, kids can still be exposed to inappropriate content or become subject to cyberbullying by their peers.

TikTok Sold to American Investors, Preventing Ban

What? TikTok will not be banned in the United States. For years, the social media app has been facing pressure to divest its American assets over privacy concerns. That deal was finalized last week.

So What? This change will likely give some of TikTok’s more than 200 million American users some peace of mind regarding their privacy. However, controversy continues as reported glitches (that some say seems to block certain political content) coincided with the sale, resulting in newfound censorship concerns.

Now What? Let’s face it, there will always be controversy when it comes to social media apps. This is just the latest flavor. But rather than trying to constantly keep up, perhaps the best thing we can do is to be open and honest with our kids about how and how much both they and we are using social media. And if you notice negative habits or trends, simply hit the reset button and take a bit of a break from these apps.