A US mother is outraged and calling for action after her seven-year-old daughter's online character was "violently gang-raped" in an online social platform.
Amber Petersen wrote a long and graphic post detailing her experience after she let her child play the popular multiplayer game Roblox.
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Ms Petersen says her girl was using Roblox on her iPad when suddenly she stopped and showed her mother the screen.
"At first, I couldn't believe what I was seeing," Ms Petersen wrote.
"My sweet and innocent daughter's avatar was being VIOLENTLY GANG-RAPED ON A PLAYGROUND by two males. A female observer approached them and proceeded to jump on her body at the end of the act.
"Then the three characters ran away, leaving my daughter's avatar laying on her face in the middle of the playground."
Sickening screenshots posted to her Facebook page show the avatars violently sexually assaulting the girl. The images include graphic animation of male genitalia.
Ms Petersen says she's been left "traumatised and violated on so many levels" and is calling for parents to delete the app and lock down their privacy and security settings.
"Words cannot describe the shock, disgust, and guilt that I am feeling right now, but I'm trying to put those feelings aside so I can get this warning out to others as soon as possible," she said.
"Although I was immediately able to shield my daughter from seeing the entire interaction, I am shuddering to think of what kind of damage this image could have on her psyche, as well as any other child that could potentially be exposed to this."
In a statement, Roblox said the company was "outraged" and the offender was permanently banned from the site.
"We have zero tolerance for this behavior," it says.
"Our work to ensure a safe platform is always evolving and remains a top priority for us."
Newshub.
