Metaverses may be the next target of regulators

Metaverses are actively developing, and this opens up more and more opportunities not only for ordinary users and entire corporations, but also for attackers of all stripes.. According to a recent study by Elliptic Connect, this could draw the attention of regulators to the industry in the near future.

Despite the crypto bear market, well-known mainstream brands continued to show high interest in the development of the virtual space in 2022. As Elliptic Connect experts write, more and more corporations have explored the new economic opportunities offered by the metaverse, but so far they cannot find immediate practical and profitable application for them..

However, according to the study, at least 58% of respondents expect that in the next five years, the metaverse will still present some profitable commercial opportunities for their business.

Metaverses and crime

Citibank analysts estimate that the metaverse industry could be worth up to $13 trillion by 2030.. This indicates an attractive investment potential for this industry, but it will also inevitably attract the attention of criminals and simply those with unkind and offensive intentions.

Elliptic experts have identified a wide range of possible ways in which attackers can harm users. This list covers both traditional financial crimes (scam, fraud) and more specific digital asset crimes (hacker attacks, theft of other users' virtual items).

Elliptic emphasized that the metaverses as a single virtual space make it easier to steal “portable” non-fungible tokens representing fashion or luxury items. In addition, analysts expressed concern that such tokens could become a new channel for money laundering.

Previously, the editors of BeInCrypto ranked the top 5 crypto security threats, telling how hackers attack blockchains.

Elliptic also recalled cases of bullying, racism and other forms of virtual hatred and sexual abuse in the metaverse. So, at the end of December 2021, a resident of Britain said that in the metaverse, several male avatars subjected her to virtual group violence.

Another example of abuse in the metaverse is last year's story about a Korean man who received 4 years in prison for sexually harassing minors in the popular virtual world.

Also, for example, with the help of artificial intelligence technologies, cyber fraudsters can steal personal data of users in virtual worlds, generate their avatars and then use them to commit crimes.. The Chinese authorities have already taken care of this issue.. They issued a decree prohibiting the generation of images by neural networks without watermarks or other marks.

be regulated

Accordingly, there is a need for the emergence of special forces or authorities in the metauniverses that can protect ordinary users from the encroachments of intruders.

In October 2022, the police in the city of Ajman (United Arab Emirates) took an important step in this direction. She announced that now law enforcement officers will provide services to citizens through the technologies of the metaverses.

The study assumes that as early as 2023, the growth of such risks will force regulators to pay attention to this industry.. Such intervention can be quite direct. For example, regulators can make it clear to users to what extent the metaverse and activities within it are subject to pre-existing regulatory frameworks.

However, new technologies will require qualitatively new approaches.. For example, last year the UAE authorities announced the creation of the first Dubai Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority (VARA) to oversee activities in the virtual asset segment in Dubai.

Previously, the editors of BeInCrypto compiled a list of the top 10 metaverses to watch in 2023.