Extremist organizations are reportedly exploiting popular online gaming platforms such as Roblox to groom, radicalize, and influence Filipino minors toward violence, authorities revealed during a Senate panel investigation on Tuesday, April 14.
Officials told the Senate Committee on Women, Children, Family Relations and Gender Equality that grooming activities have evolved beyond online sexual abuse and exploitation of children (OSAEC) to include ideological radicalization targeting young players.
The Philippine National Police (PNP) reported that minors playing online games are being exposed to extremist content and recruitment tactics promoting violent ideologies.
Investigators noted references to figures and beliefs such as Adolf Hitler, Satanism, and the Order of Nine Angles—an occult-linked network tied to radical movements. Some children were allegedly encouraged to idolize perpetrators of mass shootings abroad.
Authorities believe many of those behind these grooming efforts are operating from overseas, posing significant challenges for monitoring and law enforcement.
PNP Anti-Cybercrime Group Deputy Director for Operations Romeo Desiderio said the alarming patterns emerged from a series of rescue operations involving minors influenced through online platforms.
Among the cases highlighted was an operation in Laguna where seven minors were rescued after authorities thwarted an alleged plan linked to a potential mass shooting. Additional operations led to the rescue of 12 more minors in Marikina, Las Piñas, and Negros Occidental, with other cases still under investigation.
“So nagpapatrolling tayo doon… mostly dito sa ating gaming apps, particularly sa Roblox nga,” Desiderio said.
Senate Deputy Majority Leader Senator Risa Hontiveros, who chairs the committee, expressed concern over the growing risks children face in the digital world.
“These are moments when I wish children could just play and enjoy the benefits technology offers, benefits that develop their various skills and allow their creativity to flourish without exposing them to different kinds of harm that exploits the vulnerabilities of their young minds,” she said.
Hontiveros added that she wished “life saturated by technology were less complicated, especially for our children.”