The ‘metaverse’ could carry risks for the real world, both in terms of ethical and moral issues and legal, according to the Federal Service for Supervision of Telecommunications, Information Technology and Mass Media of Russia (Roskomnadzor).
The Roskomnadzor Scientific-Technical Center this week published a report assessing the risks and potential possibilities of virtual reality spaces in which people can interact across national borders.
“The risks of the ‘metaverse’ are related to the desire of users to transfer their values, their ethics and their real identities to the virtual world,” the report states.
According to the investigation, one of the risks of using the ‘metaverse’ lies in “the reduction of the importance of morals and ethics through the use of a virtual avatar”. Likewise, identity and personal data become more vulnerable to copying, deletion and manipulation.
The authors also write that the ‘metaverse’ can facilitate illegal cryptocurrency transactions, even between people of different nationalities. “At the moment, it is not clear how the legislative initiatives and legal jurisdiction will be applied in the ‘metaverse’, due to the absence of physical borders”, since – they assure – since there are no real borders, there is no responsibility for the Actions.
The report also provides an overview of the opportunities in the ‘metaverse’, including the growth of new markets and increased demand for video games and online entertainment. In addition, the authors argue that the growth of users of virtual reality has made possible new forms of political activity.
The metaverse is a virtual space in which people can interact with each other and with digital objects through avatars using virtual reality technologies.
