Virtual Violence and the Meta-Universe: How the Dark Side of the New World Affects Society

Is violence possible in the virtual world? Or are you free of danger when accessing the Metaverse? Join us, and let's find the answers together.

Metaverse is no longer a mere concept printed on paper. Already today, you can find dozens of practical examples of projects related to its idea, like The Sandbox, ApeCoin, Decentraland, etc. And if we take a look at the data provided by Statista, we can see that by 2030, it is predicted that the number of users in the Metaverse will reach 2,633 million. In addition, the ARPU (Average Value per User) is estimated to be $79.5. All these numbers show that Metaverse is a trendy topic gaining traction in the current world.

Overall, the Metaverse is quite a revolutionary space. Here, you can access and emerge in a virtual reality world full of various activities using innovative technology like AI, augmented reality, blockchain, etc. You can even play your favorite slots online at Metaverse-based casinos with enhanced features and level of engagement.

However, Metaverse is not only about fun and innovation. It has quite many flaws as well, with assaults, harassment, bullying, and health issues being the leading ones. Let's shift our focus towards the negative side of this concept and discover all the major threats it faces. So, get comfortable, and let's begin.

The Negative Effects of Metaverse on Society

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So, how can the Metaverse become a threat in modern society? Based on the data from the Center for Countering Digital Hate, only in VRChat, a well-known virtual reality game, an act of violence happens every seven minutes. And this is not only simple bullying. The cases even include sexual harassment, financial fraud, and emotional damage.

Effects on Teenagers

According to the Institute for Family Studies, video games may become pathological and have disastrous effects on teenagers and family life overall. One in every ten teens engaged in video games has a pathological issue.

The same goes for the Metaverse as well. Moreover, the damage caused by virtual reality can be even more severe, considering the absence of legal regulations in the Metaverse.

The first negative impact on teens and children is addiction. It's when the person can't control the time and resources they spend on gaming, online demo slots, and interacting with other avatars. This can alter the balance between real and virtual worlds, cause problems in family relationships, lead to neglecting studies, and even suicide.

The most common signs of addiction cover the following.

• Loss of interest in everyday hobbies;
• The use of Metaverse and virtual games as a coping mechanism to avoid reality;
• Gradually increasing time spent on gaming activities;
• Lying to family and friends about the real amount of time playing;
• Skipping daily training or school to engage in games in the Metaverse;
• Insomnia, sleep deprivation, anger, depression, and other physical abnormalities caused by excessive gaming.

Most importantly, with the rise of Metaverse violence, there is also a threat that it can desensitize youngsters and teens to such activities as bullying, Internet harassment, etc. This, in turn, can lead to emotional difficulties and result in more violent acts among teens and children.

Sexual Harassment

Even though the Metaverse is still a relatively new experience, it has already seen many cases of sexual harassment. Take one of the most recent virtual rape incidents that is currently under investigation by the UK police. This case involves a young girl under the age of 16 who reported being sexually harassed in an immersive video game by a group of adult men.

And this is not the only example of sexual assault in the Metaverse. In November 2021, during the beta testing of Meta Horizon Worlds, one of the users was virtually molested. Another case took place in December 2021, when the psychotherapist Nina Jane Patel, a Metaverse researcher's avatar, got raped virtually by a gang of male avatars. They even took pictures of her. We can also look at the incident in May 2022, which involved a researcher of SumOfUs who was sexually harassed by another user in a private room during a virtual party.

The question most of you will wonder about is probably whether such incidents taking place in a virtual, non-existent world are real. And should anyone get punished for such incidents? At first sight, it may seem that such cases have nothing to do with reality and don't cause any substantial harm to victims.

However, this is not true. Just let us remember that all actions, including communication and interaction among avatars in the Metaverse, are intensely real. It means people feel and suffer from sexual or any other kind of harassment as it were to happen in the real world, the only difference being the lack of physical injuries. For example, the victims can suffer from huge emotional and psychological trauma reminiscent of that caused by physical assault.

Privacy Issues

The next concern coming from the use of the Metaverse is the data and privacy safety of people. This comes from the fact that the Metaverse gathers a bunch of information about us, like where we are, who we are, what we prefer, what we dislike, and so on.

To be fair, all these details can help the Metaverse and companies built on them to make personalized offers and products for people. However, it doesn't exclude the fact that they are like a "silent bomb" that can explode at any time. For example, when our info lands in the wrong hands, like fraudsters or hackers, they can easily use it to make fake versions of us and get their hands on our money.

(Devdiscourse's journalists were not involved in the production of this article. The facts and opinions appearing in the article do not reflect the views of Devdiscourse and Devdiscourse does not claim any responsibility for the same.)