Some applications of the so-called metaverse are of “inherently dangerous design” warned the British Association for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC, for its acronym in English).
A 13-year-old girl witnessed sexual harassment, exposure to sexual material, and the threat of rape in a virtual reality world.
The association for the defense of children said it was “shocked and outraged” at the findings of the investigation.
The NSPCC’s director of online child protection policy, Angy Burrows, added that the investigation had uncovered “a toxic combination of risks”.
Our researcher -using an app classified for use by people over 13 years of age- visited virtual reality spaces where she found avatars simulating having sex. She was shown sex toys, condoms, and was approached by several adult men.
The metaverse is the name given to the games and experiences that people who wear virtual reality headsets have access to. The technology, previously limited to games, could be adapted for uses in a number of other areas – from work to play, to concerts and movie trips.
Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg thinks it could represent the future of the internet — so much so that he recently renamed his social network Meta and the company has spent billions developing its Oculus Quest virtual reality headset .
It is estimated that this helmet -now called Meta Quest- has more than 75% of the market. It was with one of these helmets that our researcher began to explore the app and part of the metaverse. The app, called VRChat, is an online virtual platform that users can explore with 3D avatars.
Although not created by Facebook, it can be downloaded from an app store in Facebook’s Meta Quest headset without user age verification. The only requirement is to have a Facebook account.
Sexualized spaces
Our investigator created a fake profile to create her account and her true identity was not verified.
Once inside VRChat, there are rooms where users can meet: some are innocent and ordinary – like a McDonald’s restaurant, for example – but there are also lap dances and striptease.
Minors mingle freely with adults.
One man told our researcher that avatars can “undress and do unspeakable things. ” Others talked about “playing erotic roles”.
As a result of our investigation, the NSPCC stated that improvements to online security are an urgent issue.
Andy Burrows of the NSPCC told us that what we had found was “remarkable”.
“These are children being exposed to really harmful and completely inappropriate experiences,” he said.
He argues that technology companies have learned little from the mistakes made with the first generation of social networks.
“This is a product whose design is inherently dangerous, due to carelessness and negligence. We are seeing products being released without any sign that safety has been taken into account,” he claimed.
Meta responds that it has tools that allow players to block other users, and is examining how to make improvements “as it learns how people interact in these spaces.”
